1
a
: in a brief way
briefly mentioned
b
: in brief
the food, briefly, was awful
2
: for a short time
briefly married
Synonyms
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
The golden spike had been briefly exhibited in Fairbanks in 1967 and Anchorage in 2001.
—
Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Jan. 2025
They got engaged in 2012, broke up briefly, then rekindled their romance and married in December 2018.
—Jonathan Granoff, Newsweek, 29 Jan. 2025
Following the news, 23andMe’s stock — which already fell 82% last year — dropped another 10% in after-hours trading and was briefly halted.
—Bruce Gil, Quartz, 29 Jan. 2025
Combs, Lopez, Jones and Barrow were all briefly arrested.
—Edward Segarra, USA TODAY, 28 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for briefly 
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Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Jan. 2025
They got engaged in 2012, broke up briefly, then rekindled their romance and married in December 2018.
—Jonathan Granoff, Newsweek, 29 Jan. 2025
Following the news, 23andMe’s stock — which already fell 82% last year — dropped another 10% in after-hours trading and was briefly halted.
—Bruce Gil, Quartz, 29 Jan. 2025
Combs, Lopez, Jones and Barrow were all briefly arrested.
—Edward Segarra, USA TODAY, 28 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for briefly
Dictionary Entries Near briefly
Cite this Entry
“Briefly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/briefly. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.
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