How to Use lightly in a Sentence

lightly

adverb
  • She moved lightly across the room.
  • The judge let her off lightly with a short sentence.
  • He talks lightly about the problems he's been having at work.
  • Our troops were armed too lightly to take on the heavily armed invaders.
  • Considering the harm he did, he's gotten off lightly with only a warning.
  • These vegetables can be eaten either raw or lightly cooked.
  • The choice to close the shop didn’t come lightly, though.
    — Evan Moore august 15, Charlotte Observer, 15 Aug. 2025
  • Lift the legs to the right up and over the medicine ball to tap the heels lightly on the other side.
    — Jennifer Nied, Women's Health, 30 Aug. 2023
  • Let the soup sit in the pot to melt the cheese and lightly cook the asparagus, about 1 minute.
    — Ronna Welsh, Washington Post, 24 May 2023
  • The plane went down in a lightly wooded area close to a field.
    — Aliza Chasan, CBS News, 6 June 2023
  • Dust your hands with flour and lightly flour the first dough ball.
    — Time, 12 Aug. 2021
  • Add the achiote and spices and toast lightly, about 30 seconds.
    — Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 2 Feb. 2024
  • The wine is aged six months and lightly fined and filtered.
    — John Mariani, Forbes.com, 18 Apr. 2025
  • The fish is lightly battered in the same cornmeal that coats the frickles and okra.
    — Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 25 Oct. 2023
  • Djokovic didn’t take it lightly and smashed his racket on the ground in anger while the U.S. crowd cheered from the stands.
    — oregonlive, 12 Sep. 2021
  • West agrees that no one at The Crown is taking the subject of the princess' death lightly.
    — Clark Collis, EW.com, 18 Oct. 2022
  • Turn the chiles from time to time to allow the skin to blister and char lightly all over.
    — Tribune News Service, cleveland, 2 Aug. 2021
  • The packed snow was hard and clean, lightly dusted over.
    — Louise Erdrich, New Yorker, 25 May 2025
  • But the whole point of a dark sky area is to tread lightly, and bears like peace and quiet, too.
    — Neal Rubin, Detroit Free Press, 3 July 2022
  • Now square up the pieces of the frame and lightly tack-weld them together.
    — Mike Allen, Popular Mechanics, 24 Mar. 2023
  • Then, lightly cover the seeds with no more than ¼ inch of earth.
    — Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 Mar. 2025
  • The decision to include the Dark Lord of the Sith did not come lightly.
    — Dalton Ross, EW.com, 24 Mar. 2022
  • The tops can be lightly brushed with milk and sprinkled with the sliced green tops of the onions, if desired.
    — Carol Deptolla, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 26 Jan. 2022
  • Using a pair of tongs and a towel, lightly rub the heated grill grates with a little grapeseed oil.
    — Staff, FOXNews.com, 3 July 2026
  • It’s also lightly lined and has a deep V-neck design that can remain hidden under different tops.
    — Clara McMahon, PEOPLE, 3 July 2026
  • When choosing a fresh pineapple, look for one that feels heavy and smells lightly sweet near the base.
    — Amy Brownstein, Verywell Health, 3 July 2026
  • Pat lightly with clean fingertips or a makeup sponge to blend any shine.
    — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Kansas City Star, 2 July 2026
  • Pat lightly with clean fingertips or a makeup sponge if needed to blend any shine.
    — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson july 2, Miami Herald, 2 July 2026
  • This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
    — Annie Heilbrunn, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 July 2026
  • Line bottom with parchment paper and lightly coat parchment with nonstick spray.
    — Shilpa Uskokovic, Bon Appetit Magazine, 1 July 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lightly.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: