ordinarily
adverb
or·di·nar·i·ly
ˌȯr-də-ˈner-ə-lē 
: in an ordinary manner or to an ordinary extent: such as
a
: in the ordinary course of events : usually
She was ordinarily very busy in the morning.
the jobs ordinarily handled by junior staff members
… cortisol, a hormone which ordinarily comes into play in situations of bodily stress …—
Maggie Scarf
Maggie ScarfOrdinarily, the immune system of any mammal will work to fight off a fungal parasite.—David Quammen
David Quammen
b
: to the usual extent : moderately
It must suffice for him to be ordinarily honest according to the ordinary honesty of the world's ways …—Anthony Trollope
Anthony Trollope
c
: in a commonplace or inferior way : without distinction
A friend of mine … has two apartments on the 3rd floor, very ordinarily furnished …—Walt Whitman
Walt WhitmanExamples of ordinarily in a Sentence
ordinarily, I get off work at five, but this week I'm working late to meet a project deadline
Recent Examples on the Web
Led by Marcel Malanga's father, Christian Malanga, a Congolese political exile who ordinarily lived in Utah, the group of men attacked the home of a senior Congolese politician on May 19, 2024, before invading Kinshasa's sprawling presidential complex.
—Npr's International Desk, NPR, 8 Apr. 2025
The dual-class effect: Meta as a case study In a standard single-class structure – where voting power tracks the amount of company equity a shareholder owns – someone seeking total control of a company must ordinarily spend a lot of money buying up shares, which also means assuming a lot of risk.
—Gregory H. Shill, The Conversation, 8 Apr. 2025
The Wilson Center’s president is ordinarily appointed by the board of trustees, but members of the board were fired in recent weeks.
—Aishvarya Kavi, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2025
Antitrust claims ordinarily have a four-year statute of limitations, so class member players would likely include those who competed since 2021, and future ones would go until the date of final judgment in the case.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 18 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ordinarily
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Npr's International Desk, NPR, 8 Apr. 2025
The dual-class effect: Meta as a case study In a standard single-class structure – where voting power tracks the amount of company equity a shareholder owns – someone seeking total control of a company must ordinarily spend a lot of money buying up shares, which also means assuming a lot of risk.
—Gregory H. Shill, The Conversation, 8 Apr. 2025
The Wilson Center’s president is ordinarily appointed by the board of trustees, but members of the board were fired in recent weeks.
—Aishvarya Kavi, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2025
Antitrust claims ordinarily have a four-year statute of limitations, so class member players would likely include those who competed since 2021, and future ones would go until the date of final judgment in the case.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 18 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ordinarily
Cite this Entry
“Ordinarily.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ordinarily. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
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