/bair"lee/ , adv.
1. only just; scarcely; no more than; almost not: He had barely enough money to pay for the car.
2. without disguise or concealment; openly: They gave the facts to him barely.
3. scantily; meagerly; sparsely.
4. Archaic. merely.
[ bef. 950; ME; OE baerlice. See BARE 1 , -LY ]
Usage. 1. See hardly .