The meaning of LIKELY is having a high probability of occurring or being true : very probable. How to use likely in a sentence.

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Likely and unlikely are adjectives. We use them to say that something will probably happen or not happen in the future. We can use them before a noun, or with the verbs be, seem and appear: …

In conversation and in informal writing, likely is sometimes an adverb with most, more than, or very in front of it, or as part of the phrase more likely than not.

A likely person, place, or thing is one that will probably be suitable for a particular purpose. At one point he had seemed a likely candidate to become Prime Minister. We aimed the microscope at a likely …

Oct 9, 2025 · likely (comparative more likely or likelier, superlative most likely or likeliest) Rain is likely later this afternoon. His parents — a restless, titanically self-involved father and a mother who …

Likely in the senses "probably destined'' and "probably'' is often preceded by a qualifying word like very, more, or quite: The board is very likely to turn down the request.

There are 18 meanings listed in OED's entry for the word likely, six of which are labelled obsolete. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.

Likely definition: probably or apparently destined (usually followed by an infinitive).. See examples of LIKELY used in a sentence.

Definition of likely. English dictionary and integrated thesaurus for learners, writers, teachers, and students with advanced, intermediate, and beginner levels.