English
newly
Newly comes from Middle English newly, from Old English nīewlīċe ‘newly’; equivalent to new + -ly.
- Old Englishc. 450–1150nīewlīċe1‘newly’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500newly1
- Englishearliest quotation 1918newly1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English newly
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1918, William Babington Maxwell, Indianapolis: “One saint's day in mid-term a certain newly appointed…”.
Lineage
- Old Englishc. 450–1150nīewlīċeWiktionary, English newly‘newly’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500newlyWiktionary, English newly
- Englishearliest quotation 1918newlyWiktionary, English newly. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1918, William Babington Maxwell, Indianapolis: “One saint's day in mid-term a certain newly appointed…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *nu ‘now’
renovation, innovate, renovate, innovator, noo, telenovela, novation, 11 more
through Proto-Indo-European *néwos ‘new’
novel, innovation, nova, novice, neon, nuevo, novitiate, 16 more
through Proto-Germanic *niwjaz ‘new’
through Proto-West Germanic *niwi ‘new’
through Old English nīewe ‘new’
Today it means
adv Very recently/lately; in the immediate past.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “newly”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Old English nīewlīċe / newly