Etymograph

English

seriously

Seriously comes from Middle English seriously (seryowslech ‘earnestly’), equivalent to serious + -ly.

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500seriously1‘earnestly’
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1913seriously1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English seriously
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1913, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Return of Tarzan: ““I’ll qualify the statement, then,” she answered, with a…”.

Lineage

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500seriouslyWiktionary, English seriously‘earnestly’
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1913seriouslyWiktionary, English seriously. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1913, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Return of Tarzan: ““I’ll qualify the statement, then,” she answered, with a…”

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Today it means

adv In a serious or literal manner.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “seriously”. 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 / Middle English seriously / seriously