reluctantly

adverb

re·​luc·​tant·​ly ri-ˈlək-tənt-lē 

: in a reluctant manner : with aversion or hesitation

The quiet resolution in his voice penetrated her racing thoughts. Reluctantly she gave him a corner of her attention.

—Elizabeth George Speare

He is about to release 'Thriller,' and today he's agreed, reluctantly, to sit for the Rolling Stone cover.

—Gerri Hirshey

Kirsti had gone to bed reluctantly, complaining that she wanted to stay up with the others, that she was grownup enough, … that it wasn't fair.

—Lois Lowry

Examples of reluctantly in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

My dad reluctantly pulls our rental car into a shopping center and parks. — Margrét Ann Thors, PEOPLE, 2 Aug. 2026

The wisest option might be to reluctantly cash in on the club’s 2024-25 player of the season. — Thom Harris, New York Times, 1 Aug. 2026

As Marvel reverses its decision to renew Wonder Man for Season 2 on Disney+, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is bidding farewell to the role of reluctantly super-powered actor Simon Williams. — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 30 July 2026

The sense is of a political culture reluctantly shaking off a decades-long stupor. — Michael Powell, The Atlantic, 30 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1646, in the meaning defined above