Etymograph

English

ruly

Ruly comes from Middle English rewly ‘sorrowful, distraught, rueful’, from Old English hrēowlīċ ‘grievous, pitiful, sad, wretched, cruel’, and ultimately from hrēow.

  1. Old Englishc. 450–1150hrēow1
  2. Old Englishc. 450–1150hrēowlīċ2‘grievous, pitiful, sad, wretched, cruel’
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500rewly2‘sorrowful, distraught, rueful’
  4. Englishtodayruly2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Old English hreowlic
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English ruly

Earlier history not traced here. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Old Englishc. 450–1150hrēowWiktionary, Old English hreowlic
  2. Old Englishc. 450–1150hrēowlīċWiktionary, English ruly‘grievous, pitiful, sad, wretched, cruel’
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500rewlyWiktionary, English ruly‘sorrowful, distraught, rueful’
  4. EnglishtodayrulyWiktionary, English ruly

Linked words

through Old English hrēow

ruthless, rue, ruefully, 5 more

Today it means

adj Pitiable; miserable.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “ruly”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Old English hreowlic. 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 hrēow / ruly

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