: in a slow manner : not quickly, fast, early, rashly, or readily
Slow vs. Slowly: Usage Guide
Some commentators claim that careful writers avoid the adverb slow, in spite of the fact that it has had over four centuries of usage.
have a continent forbearance till the speed of his rage goes slower
—
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
In actual practice, slow and slowly are not used in quite the same way. Slow is almost always used with verbs that denote movement or action, and it regularly follows the verb it modifies.
beans … are best cooked long and slow
—Louise Prothro
Louise Prothro
Slowly is used before the verb
a sense of outrage, which slowly changed to shame
—Paul Horgan
Paul Horgan
and with participial adjectives.
a slowly dawning awareness … of the problem
—Amer. Labor
Amer. Labor
Slowly is used after verbs where slow might also be used
burn slow or slowly
and after verbs where slow would be unidiomatic.
the leadership turned slowly toward bombing as a means of striking back
—David Halberstam
David Halberstam
Examples of slowly in a Sentence
Things are slowly getting better.
walked slowly toward the ringing phone
Recent Examples on the Web
During an encounter, experts say to maintain eye contact with the animal, try to appear as large as possible, slowly back away without turning your back on the animal and to not run.
—Brie Stimson, FOXNews.com, 3 Jan. 2026
Luckily, that attitude is slowly beginning to change.
—Ronnie Koenig, SELF, 2 Jan. 2026
Starting with a light pink at the nail's edges, this aura design slowly fades into a fun, bright purple in the center.
—Odeya Pinkus, InStyle, 2 Jan. 2026
In March, the studio made a splash on social media with a live stream that slowly unveiled the cast list, one name at a time, over the course of roughly five-and-a-half hours.
—Brendan Morrow, USA Today, 2 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for slowly
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Brie Stimson, FOXNews.com, 3 Jan. 2026
Luckily, that attitude is slowly beginning to change.
—Ronnie Koenig, SELF, 2 Jan. 2026
Starting with a light pink at the nail's edges, this aura design slowly fades into a fun, bright purple in the center.
—Odeya Pinkus, InStyle, 2 Jan. 2026
In March, the studio made a splash on social media with a live stream that slowly unveiled the cast list, one name at a time, over the course of roughly five-and-a-half hours.
—Brendan Morrow, USA Today, 2 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for slowly
Cite this Entry
“Slowly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/slowly. Accessed 5 Jan. 2026.
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