gingerly
pronunciation
How to pronounce gingerly in British English:
UK [ˈdʒɪndʒəli]
How to pronounce gingerly in American English:
US [ˈdʒɪndʒərli]
-
- Adjective:
- with extreme care or delicacy
-
- Adverb:
- in a gingerly manner
Word Origin
- gingerly
- gingerly: see general
- gingerly (adv.)
- "extremely cautiously" (of movements, etc.), c. 1600, earlier "elegantly, daintily" (1510s), of unknown origin. Perhaps [OED] from Old French gensor, comparative of gent "dainty, delicate," from Latin gentius "(well)-born" (see gentle). Meaning "extremely cautiously" is from c. 1600.
Example
- 1. Stepping gingerly through the turmoil in egypt
- 2. As the world tiptoes gingerly into 2012 , let 's celebrate the fallibility of forecasting and the perils of prediction .
- 3. At a recent math conference , rouslan krechetnikov watched his colleagues gingerly carry cups of coffee .
- 4. I step off the barge and creep gingerly around the inner-tube as it bobs in the green-blue water .
- 5. Mr obama 's second-term plan mentioned poverty once , and on the trail he spoke gingerly of " those aspiring to the middle class " .