duly

adverb

ˈdü-lē How to pronounce duly (audio)
Definition of dulynext
as in properly
in a manner suitable for the occasion or purpose the perpetrators of this outrageous crime will be duly punished

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of duly While Qatar duly intercepted these threats, it isn’t known to have used its air force in retaliation for any Iranian attacks on its territory. — Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026 Harry and Meghan, who duly flew in on Wednesday, will base themselves in a private property outside London, thought to be in the Cotswolds. — The Week Uk, TheWeek, 28 Aug. 2026 Investors duly rewarded Microsoft’s results by adding a record $450 billion to its market value in a single day. — Amit Joshi, Fortune, 20 Aug. 2026 Inès Konan kept her cool despite a three-minute delay for a VAR check and duly dispatched the penalty to open the scoring for Ivory Coast. — ABC News, 13 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for duly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for duly
  1. properly
  2. correctly
  3. appropriately
  4. happily
Adverb
  • Areas at high risk of flooding and where few people are insured tend to be poorer, experts said, as are areas where FEMA's flood maps don't properly convey the severity of the risk or mandate that enough people buy coverage.
    — MICHAEL PHILLIS, Arkansas Online, 30 Sep. 2026
  • Suitcases rolling away, too many bags and handles not fitting the hand properly all became part of the design brief for Series 3.
    — Kanika Talwar, Footwear News, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of properly
Adverb
  • Beyond supplying payload deployment structures — the hardware that helps a satellite, sensor, solar array or other payload survive launch and then deploy correctly in space — Applied Aerospace manufactures the landing gear components.
    — Harvey Stober, CNBC, 2 Oct. 2026
  • The platforms that come through these periods intact are rarely the ones that guessed the cycle correctly.
    — Khalifa Aldhaheri, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of correctly
Adverb
  • The highlights of white lights, balloons, and shirts stand out while black suits look appropriately dark and retain the fine contours of their cuts and textures.
    — Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 28 Sep. 2026
  • An assistive robot would need to distinguish among these actions to respond appropriately.
    — Bo Wang, The Conversation, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of appropriately
Adverb
  • The real draw, though, is getting all those actives wrapped up in a plush texture, with shea and cupuaçu butters bringing the deep moisture your skin will happily soak up overnight.
    — Christa Joanna Lee, Allure, 2 Oct. 2026
  • My daughter was enchanted by the Balinese rice-on-the-forehead ritual for good fortune that is a part of the arrival, and the front desk staff happily indulged her request to do it again—multiple times a day.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of happily

Browse Nearby Words

dully
duly
dumb
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Duly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/duly. Accessed 6 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of regimen

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All