Spelling.School · How to spell

How to spell seriously

What it means: In a solemn or stern manner; not playfully.

In a sentence: The teacher looked seriously at the students who were talking. ▶

The part people get wrong

Watch for an unstressed vowel that is hard to hear. Often misspelled as serously or seriosly.

Same family: seriousness, serious, grave, earnest. If you can spell one, the shared part carries to the others.

Where it comes from: “Seriously” comes from the adjective “serious,” which arrived in English from Medieval Latin ‘seriosus,’ meaning ‘weighty’ or ‘important.’ Over time, English added the adverb ending “‑ly” so it could describe doing something in a serious way, not just being a serious person.

Patterns it uses: The unstressed vowel (schwa)

Try spelling it

You will hear the word and a sentence. Type it and press Enter. Then four more words from the same level, so you know where you stand.

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