Directly

Directly
Directly Di*rect"ly, adv. 1. In a direct manner; in a straight line or course. ``To run directly on.'' --Shak. [1913 Webster]

Indirectly and directly too Thou hast contrived against the very life Of the defendant. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

2. In a straightforward way; without anything intervening; not by secondary, but by direct, means. [1913 Webster]

3. Without circumlocution or ambiguity; absolutely; in express terms. [1913 Webster]

No man hath hitherto been so impious as plainly and directly to condemn prayer. --Hooker. [1913 Webster]

4. Exactly; just. [1913 Webster]

Stand you directly in Antonius' way. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

5. Straightforwardly; honestly. [1913 Webster]

I have dealt most directly in thy affair. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

6. Manifestly; openly. [Obs.] [1913 Webster]

Desdemona is directly in love with him. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

7. Straightway; next in order; without delay; immediately. ``Will she go now to bed?' ?Directly.''' --Shak. [1913 Webster]

8. Immediately after; as soon as. [1913 Webster]

Directly he stopped, the coffin was removed. --Dickens. [1913 Webster]

Note: This use of the word is common in England, especially in colloquial speech, but it can hardly be regarded as a well-sanctioned or desirable use. [1913 Webster]

{Directly proportional} (Math.), proportional in the order of the terms; increasing or decreasing together, and with a constant ratio; -- opposed to {inversely proportional}.

Syn: Immediately; forthwith; straightway; instantly; instantaneously; soon; promptly; openly; expressly.

Usage: -- {Directly}, {Immediately}, {Instantly}, {Instantaneously}. Directly denotes, without any delay or diversion of attention; immediately implies, without any interposition of other occupation; instantly implies, without any intervention of time. Hence, ``I will do it directly,'' means, ``I will go straightway about it.'' ``I will do it immediately,'' means, ``I will do it as the very next thing.'' ``I will do it instantly,'' allows not a particle of delay. Instantaneously, like instantly, marks an interval too small to be appreciable, but commonly relates to physical causes; as, the powder touched by fire instantaneously exploded. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • directly — [adv1] the shortest route as a crow flies*, beeline*, dead, direct, due, exactly, plump, precisely, right, slam bang*, slap, smack, smack dab*, straight, straightly, undeviatingly, unswervingly, without deviation; concepts 581,778 Ant. indirectly …   New thesaurus

  • directly — [də rekt′lē; ] also [ dīrekt′lē] adv. 1. in a direct way or line; straight 2. with nothing or no one between [directly responsible] 3. exactly; completely [directly opposite] 4. a) instantly; right away …   English World dictionary

  • directly — index instantly Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • directly — 1510s, in a straight line, from DIRECT (Cf. direct) (adj.) + LY (Cf. ly) (2). Figurative use is slightly earlier (c.1500). Meaning at once, immediately in time (c.1600) is from earlier sense of without intermediate steps (1520s) …   Etymology dictionary

  • directly — *presently, shortly, soon …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • directly — ► ADVERB 1) in a direct manner. 2) exactly in a specified position. 3) immediately. ► CONJUNCTION Brit. ▪ as soon as …   English terms dictionary

  • directly — di|rect|ly1 W2S2 [dıˈrektli, daı ] adv 1.) with no other person, action, process etc between ≠ ↑indirectly ▪ The new property tax law won t directly affect us. ▪ We hope to bring together the countries directly involved in the conflict. directly… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • directly — di|rect|ly1 [ dı rektli, daı rektli ] adverb *** ▸ 1 involving no one else ▸ 2 in a direct line ▸ 3 exactly ▸ 4 clearly and honestly ▸ 5 immediately ▸ 6 soon 1. ) in a way that involves only the two people or things mentioned, with no one or… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • directly — I UK [dɪˈrek(t)lɪ] / US / UK [daɪˈrek(t)lɪ] / US adverb *** 1) in a way that involves only the two people or things mentioned, with no one or nothing else coming in between I prefer to deal directly with the manager. I am holding you directly… …   English dictionary

  • directly — [[t]daɪre̱ktli, dɪr [/t]] 1) ADV: ADV prep/adv If something is directly above, below, or in front of something, it is in exactly that position. The second rainbow will be bigger than the first, and directly above it... There, directly below me,… …   English dictionary

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