/ ˈskeəsli; NAmE ˈskers-/ adverb
1.
only just; almost not :
I can scarcely believe it.
We scarcely ever meet.
Scarcely a week goes by without some new scandal in the papers.
2.
used to say that sth happens immediately after sth else happens :
He had scarcely put the phone down when the doorbell rang.
Scarcely had the game started when it began to rain.
3.
used to suggest that sth is not at all reasonable or likely :
It was scarcely an occasion for laughter.
She could scarcely complain, could she?
➡ note at hardly