mercifully

Everyday

1. Luckily; in a way that you are thankful for, because something bad was avoided or ended: «Mercifully, nobody was hurt». tree →
2. In a kind and forgiving way, showing mercy: «the king acted mercifully». tree →

In the lessons

In everyday talk and stories, «mercifully» usually means «thank goodness»: «The test was mercifully short». It shows relief. The older sense means acting with mercy, like a judge or king who forgives. Phrases: «mercifully short», «mercifully, it stopped raining».

Examples

• Mercifully, the rain stopped before the match. tree →
• The speech was mercifully short. tree →
• Mercifully, nobody was hurt in the crash. tree →
• The queen acted mercifully and set the prisoner free. tree →
• The long car journey mercifully ended at last. tree →
• Mercifully, I had remembered my coat. tree →
• The dentist was quick, mercifully. tree →
• The judge mercifully gave him a second chance. tree →
• Mercifully, the cow slept through it all, or by her cries she would have awakened the master. tree →

Note

Adverb from «merciful» + «-ly». Usually at the start of a sentence with a comma: «Mercifully, …». Related: mercy, merciful, merciless (with no mercy). Not a maths word.