I. lightly adverb
Etymology: Middle English lihtly, lightly, from Old English lēohtlīce, from lēohtlīc, adjective, light, from lēoht light + -līc -ly (adjective suffix) — more at light (not heavy)
1. : with little weight : with little force or pressure : not heavily or severely : buoyantly , gently
wearing its mantle of history lightly — Richard Joseph
lightly kneaded to produce a fine texture — American Guide Series: North Carolina
that odd superstition that the dead sleep lightly — Margery Allingham
these sixty years he wears lightly — I.A.Gordon
the little boat floated lightly on the sea
2. : in a small degree or quantity : to no great extent or amount
land lightly wooded with a varied growth — American Guide Series: Louisiana
lightly infected with the disease, recovering quite promptly — Morris Fishbein
lightly damaged
lightly fried eggs
3. : with little effort or difficulty : easily , readily
did not get off so lightly — Jean Stafford
much more deeply rooted and much less lightly resolved — Marjorie Grene
4. : with agility : nimbly , swiftly
leaped lightly over the extended tongues of wagons and buggies — Sherwood Anderson
5. : without strong cause or reason
the experiment which had so nearly ended in disaster was not to be lightly repeated — J.T.McNish
not a man to propose anything lightly — Bernard DeVoto
6. : with indifference or lack of care : slightingly , unconcernedly
she says it lightly but she means it — Walter Havighurst
a terrific responsibility, and one that we do not take lightly — New York Times Magazine
7. : without dejection : cheerfully , gaily
an end that shall lightly and joyfully meet its translation — Walt Whitman
not his words, for they were spoken lightly enough — J.E.Simmons
II. light·ly ˈliḵtli transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
Etymology: Middle English (Scots) lightlien, from lihtly, lightly frivolous, from Old English lēohtlīc light
chiefly Scotland : to make light of : treat slightingly : belittle