as in fragile
chronically or repeatedly suffering from poor health
a weakly baby who required repeated hospitalizations
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in feebly
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of weakly
The Athletic Mlb Staff, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025
The sun blasts us from the left and warm air puffs weakly from the vents.
—R29 Team, Refinery29, 19 Sep. 2025
After striking out weakly in his at-bat in the fourth, the Twins removed Jeffers from the game.
—David Brown, Twin Cities, 6 Sep. 2025
These differences matter — research shows the benefits are strongest where enforcement is clear and coverage is broad, while partial or weakly enforced laws yield far less impact.
—Nirit Cohen, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
In microtransfer printing, laser dies [red rectangles, left] are weakly held in place on their own wafer.
—Roel Baets, IEEE Spectrum, 8 Apr. 2023
Adjective
In the sixth, Chisholm walked to the plate with Aaron Judge on second base and Giancarlo Stanton on first and two outs, but Chisholm grounded out weakly to second base.
—The Athletic Mlb Staff, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025
The sun blasts us from the left and warm air puffs weakly from the vents.
—R29 Team, Refinery29, 19 Sep. 2025
After striking out weakly in his at-bat in the fourth, the Twins removed Jeffers from the game.
—David Brown, Twin Cities, 6 Sep. 2025
These differences matter — research shows the benefits are strongest where enforcement is clear and coverage is broad, while partial or weakly enforced laws yield far less impact.
—Nirit Cohen, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
In microtransfer printing, laser dies [red rectangles, left] are weakly held in place on their own wafer.
—Roel Baets, IEEE Spectrum, 8 Apr. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for weakly
Adjective
-
During an appearance on Fox News Channel this week, Mamdani sidestepped a question about whether Hamas should lay down arms as part of a fragile truce that has paused the two-year Israel-Hamas war.—
Dave Smith,
Fortune,
17 Oct. 2025
-
Following a young woman navigating life after growing up in an orphanage, the film transforms her shrinking apartment into a dreamlike maze of memory and loss, using striking visual metaphors to explore belonging, self-worth, and the fragile hope of starting over.—
Essie Assibu,
Variety,
17 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
One man aboard the boat knew how to navigate the mangroves and sandbars of the keys, and with the late summer sun beating down on the rafters, the boat pushed out feebly into the open ocean.—
Miriam Pensack,
The Dial,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The economy has withstood weak role creation precisely because the pool of applicants is shrinking.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
20 Oct. 2025
-
The defensive line took advantage of a weak Auburn O-line, sacking Arnold five times.—
Maddie Hartley,
Kansas City Star,
19 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
If the key is taken to be some primordial tradition, echoing faintly across world literature after tens of millennia, any effort to pin it down looks hopeless.—
Manvir Singh,
New Yorker,
13 Oct. 2025
-
The notion that the nine-time Women’s Super League champions need more hunger in the one competition that has historically evaded them may sound faintly ridiculous but this was a night that left plenty to be desired.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
9 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The figures were outgoing Spanish Prime Minister Adolfo Suárez, Santiago Carrillo, head of the Spanish Communist Party, and armed forces chief Manuel Gutiérrez Mellado who, though a frail near-70, got up to order the rebel Guards to lay down their arms.—
John Hopewell,
Variety,
14 Oct. 2025
-
The fate of one of the few remaining opposition figures who was still in the country depended on the frail relationship between the Cuban government and the United States.—
Nora Gamez Torres,
Miami Herald,
13 Oct. 2025
Adverb
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This is accomplished with a more casual ankle-length height, a softly rounded toe and a far more discerning metal buckle detail.—
Eric Twardzik,
Robb Report,
17 Oct. 2025
-
Be sure to use low heat to softly coax your hair into shape without creating excess frizz or flyaways, says Yepez.—
Stacia Datskovska,
Footwear News,
16 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Her parents could have believed their sickly child had died and buried her according to local customs.—
Aishwarya S. Iyer,
CNN Money,
16 Oct. 2025
-
Only Abi, the young nanny, can make the sickly girl smile.—
Anna Marie de la Fuente,
Variety,
15 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
Brake gently as needed - Brake normally if the vehicle has anti-lock brakes and pump brakes gently if in an older vehicle.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
15 Oct. 2025
-
Separate the plant by gently pulling the roots apart with your hands, cutting them apart with a clean sharp knife, or placing two garden forks back to back in the clump’s center to pull it apart.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
15 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Weakly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/weakly. Accessed 21 Oct. 2025.
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