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

Part of the group would have ordinarily done so from the hallway outside the courtroom. —Alexandra Mendoza, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Mar. 2026

Yet such alternative routes can only accommodate a fraction of the volume of oil that ordinarily passes through the Strait of Hormuz on a daily basis, according to experts. —Megan Cerullo, CBS News, 2 Mar. 2026

Parks are ordinarily exempt from the city’s public drinking ban. —Daniel Lempres, Sacbee.com, 1 Mar. 2026

For the past several seasons, Probst has hosted a companion podcast, On Fire With Jeff Probst, which ordinarily drops weekly episodes that recap each episode of the CBS reality competition show. —Staff Author, Entertainment Weekly, 28 Feb. 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