thoughtfullyadv.
/ˈθɔːtfᵿli/, /ˈθɔːtfl̩i/, U.S. /ˈθɔtf(ə)li/, /ˈθɑtf(ə)li/ In a thoughtful manner.
1. With thought; meditatively, musingly; reflectively. Also: †anxiously (obsolete).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > thought > continued thinking, reflection, contemplation > thinking about, consideration, deliberation > [adverb]
thoughtfully1479
pensively1569
reflexively1631
reflectingly1643
ponderingly1647
studiedly1658
cogitantly1660
reflectively1763
ruminatingly1823
ruminatively1837
ruminantly1847
consideringly1870
1479 Earl Rivers tr. Cordyal (Caxton) ii. ii Kepe thoughtfully thy selff and thy sowle also.
?1532 Tales & Quicke Answeres xxxvi. sig. D The marchaunt ryght sore agaynst his wylle lent it: & thoughtfully abode tyll the daye of payment was come.
1570 A. Golding tr. D. Chytræus Postil 421 All modest and wyse men..are woont to debate carefully and thoughtfully with them selues.
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Songneusement, carefully, thoughtfully.
1683 Unsatisfied Lovers 116 He walk'd very thoughtfully along those Walks, that borders upon the River, where he found Mademoiselle de Poictiers all alone.
1746 P. Francis tr. Horace in P. Francis & W. Dunkin tr. Horace Epistles i. xviii. 163 The Modest oft too dark appear, The Silent thoughtfully severe.
1782 F. Burney Cecilia V. x. ix. 355 For some minutes he thoughtfully and sorrowfully contemplated her.
a1822 P. B. Shelley Assassins iv, in Ess. & Lett. (1887) 178 The stranger gazed upon it..thoughtfully and contemplatingly.
1860 J. Tyndall Glaciers of Alps ii. App. 431 Right or wrong, a theory thus thoughtfully uttered has its value.
1908 H. Rowland Widow xi. 160 ‘The trouble’, he added, flicking the end of his cigar thoughtfully, ‘is not with man's ideal but with woman's deal. She holds all the cards, but she plays them badly.’
1939 H. Miller Cosmological Eye 77 Mandra walks thoughtfully, head down, towards the garden wall.
2007 Guardian 8 June 35/1 He answers questions thoughtfully; there is no hint of brashness.
2. With thought for others; considerately, kindly.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > [adverb] > considerately
tenderlyc1380
thoughtfully1837
considerately1871
1837 Southern Literary Messenger Feb. 110/1 I now looked over the books which had been so thoughtfully provided.
1878 W. H. G. Kingston Three Admirals xviii. 417 The engineer having thoughtfully turned off the steam to prevent the boilers from exploding.
1885 Law Times 79 335/1 Many of the persons entitled could not be traced..so the company very thoughtfully issued advertisements.
1922 A. Jekyll Kitchen Ess. 28 Pour over these a glass of consommé or good stock (thoughtfully left ready by the absent artist).
1977 New Yorker 26 Sept. 28/3 Grand Central Terminal..was thoughtfully nested in a gaggle of noble hotels.
2003 A. Franken Lies xxv. 188 The closed captioning that the memorial's organizers had thoughtfully provided for the hearing impaired.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adv.1479