ordinarily

adverb

or·​di·​nar·​i·​ly ˌȯr-də-ˈner-ə-lē 

: in an ordinary manner or to an ordinary extent: such as

a

: in the ordinary course of events : usually

She was ordinarily very busy in the morning.

the jobs ordinarily handled by junior staff members

… cortisol, a hormone which ordinarily comes into play in situations of bodily stress …

—Maggie Scarf

Ordinarily, the immune system of any mammal will work to fight off a fungal parasite.

—David Quammen

b

: to the usual extent : moderately

It must suffice for him to be ordinarily honest according to the ordinary honesty of the world's ways …

—Anthony Trollope

c

: in a commonplace or inferior way : without distinction

A friend of mine … has two apartments on the 3rd floor, very ordinarily furnished …

—Walt Whitman

Synonyms of ordinarily

• usually
• normally
• typically

Examples of ordinarily in a Sentence

ordinarily, I get off work at five, but this week I'm working late to meet a project deadline

Recent Examples on the Web

The deposit balances on those rails are tokenized, allowing the bank-to-bank movements that ordinarily clear in days to settle in seconds. —Boaz Sobrado, Forbes.com, 15 May 2026

Violations ordinarily result in a fine, according to the 2023 law. —Lia Russell, Sacbee.com, 15 May 2026

Felix Schutz scores the winning goal 21 seconds into overtime at Veltins Arena, ordinarily the home of the Schalke soccer team. —Senior Editor, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2026

McCann, a Republican up for reelection in November, would ordinarily sign measures passed by the council. —Walker Armstrong, San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1555, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for ordinarily

• arbitrarily
• customarily
• militarily
• momentarily
• necessarily
• secondarily
• temporarily
• voluntarily
• airily
• caroli
• merrily
• verily