firmly

comparative firmlier · comparative more firmly · superlative firmliest · superlative most firmly

1. mannerIn a firm or definite or strong manner.

   She corrected him firmly but gently.

   1 more example

   ‘I’m going to join the Rough Riders,’ said Stephen firmly.

   1930, Margaret Ayer Barnes, Years of Grace, Part II, Chapter IV, page 198

2. mannerSecurely.

   Tie the rope firmly to the post.

   2 more examples

   When Timothy and Julia hurried up the staircase to the bedroom floor, where a considerable commotion was taking place, Tim took Barry Leach with him. He had him gripped firmly by the arm, since he felt it was not safe to let him loose, and he had no immediate idea what to do with him.

   1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 19, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC

   Dotcom mania was slow in coming to higher education, but now it has the venerable industry firmly in its grip. Since the launch early last year of Udacity and Coursera, two Silicon Valley start-ups offering free education through MOOCs, massive open online courses, the ivory towers of academia have been shaken to their foundations.

   2013 July 20, “The attack of the MOOCs”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845, archived from the original on 04 Apr 2021

3. Definitively.

   This was widely interpreted to mean that slavery was once more firmly illegal in England.

   2018 December 1, Drachinifel, 3:21 from the start, in Anti-Slavery Patrols - The West Africa Squadron, archived from the original on 29 Nov 2024

   1 more example

   Three decisions handed down within a week of each other in June of 2023 illustrate this point. Haaland v. Brackeen, which upheld the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978, produced a majority opinion and a concurring opinion that are firmly in the exceptionalist mode but another concurring opinion and two dissenting opinions that are firmly in the assimilationist mode.

   2024 September 30, Michael Doran, “EXCEPTIONALISM AND ASSIMILATIONISM IN FEDERAL INDIAN LAW”, in Stanford Law School, volume 20, number 2, page 268, archived from the original on 24 Feb 2025