briefly

adverb

brief·​ly ˈbrē-flē How to pronounce briefly (audio)
1
a
: in a brief way
briefly mentioned
b
: in brief
the food, briefly, was awful
2
: for a short time
briefly married

Examples of briefly in a Sentence

Several important issues are only briefly mentioned. Please briefly describe your experience. We briefly considered canceling the trip.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Someone grabbed her phone, briefly appearing on screen before the stream ended, reported Reuters. Saleen Martin, USA Today, 16 May 2025 Wind speeds reached upwards of 70 miles per hour in D.C. and Baltimore Friday, and Baltimore briefly had a tornado warning in the evening, the National Weather Service said. Mary Gilbert, CNN Money, 16 May 2025 Butler, 33, can be seen briefly blowing in the direction of the inquisitive bee, while Pascal, 50, swats at it. Jack Smart, People.com, 16 May 2025 Before becoming Pope Pius XII, then-Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli briefly stopped in St. Paul on a national tour in 1936. Jared Kaufman, Twin Cities, 16 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for briefly

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of briefly was in the 13th century

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Cite this Entry

“Briefly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/briefly. Accessed 22 May. 2025.

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