HARDLY


Meaning of HARDLY in English

transcription, транскрипция: [ ˈhärd-lē ]

adverb

Date: before 12th century

1. : with force : vigorously

2. : in a severe manner : harshly

3. : with difficulty : painfully

4.

a. — used to emphasize a minimal amount

I hardly knew her

almost new — hardly a scratch on it

b. — used to soften a negative

you can't hardly tell who anyone is — G. B. Shaw

5. : certainly not

that news is hardly surprising

Usage:

Hardly in sense 5 is used sometimes with not for emphasis

just another day at the office? Not hardly

In sense 4b with a negative verb (as can't, wouldn't, didn't ) it does not make a double negative but softens the negative. In “you can't hardly find a red one,” the sense is that you can find a red one, but only with difficulty; in “you can't find a red one,” the sense is that red ones are simply not available. Use of hardly with a negative verb is a speech form; it is most commonly heard in Southern and Midland speech areas. In other speech areas and in all discursive prose, hardly is normally used with a positive

you can hardly find a red one

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate English vocabulary.      Энциклопедический словарь английского языка Merriam Webster.