briefly

adverb

brief·​ly ˈbrē-flē How to pronounce briefly (audio)
1
a
: in a brief way
briefly mentioned
b
: in brief
the food, briefly, was awful
2
: for a short time
briefly married

Examples of briefly in a Sentence

Several important issues are only briefly mentioned. Please briefly describe your experience. We briefly considered canceling the trip.
Recent Examples on the Web Very briefly, Jeff Bhasker and Greg Kurstin also make appearances on Swift records, while Lover brought Post Malone collaborators Frank Dukes and Louis Bell into the mix, too. Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 23 Apr. 2024 The protein option was briefly on menus across the world in March 2023 and stuck around until August. Antonia Debianchi, Peoplemag, 22 Apr. 2024 The Dodgers briefly erased an early four-run deficit, mounting the kind of midgame rally that has been rare since the opening weeks of the season. Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2024 Many of Swift's fans speculate that the song is about the 1975 frontman Matty Healy, whom the singer briefly dated last year before her current relationship with football star Travis Kelce. EW.com, 20 Apr. 2024 Then came another man, briefly, before Swift began dating Kelce last summer. Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 19 Apr. 2024 The cub runs over to the fence, stands up on its back legs, briefly changes direction and tries again before another individual comes up behind it and seemingly gestures to catch it. Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 18 Apr. 2024 She was briefly placed in foster care but soon dropped the charges and returned home. USA TODAY, 18 Apr. 2024 One egg broke and the other two were briefly left unincubated as the bald eagle parents had to chase away young eagles encroaching on the nest, officials said. Olivia Lloyd, Miami Herald, 10 Apr. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'briefly.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of briefly was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near briefly

Cite this Entry

“Briefly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/briefly. Accessed 26 Apr. 2024.

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