1
a
: by a narrow margin : only just
had scarcely rung the bell when the door flew open—
Agnes S. Turnbull
Agnes S. Turnbull
b
: almost not
could scarcely see for the fog
2
a
: certainly not
could scarcely interfere
b
: probably not
there could scarcely have been found a leader better equipped—V. L. Parrington
V. L. Parrington
Examples of scarcely in a Sentence
He could scarcely control his joy.
Scarcely a day goes by when they don't see or talk to each other.
He had scarcely enough money.
This is scarcely a time to laugh.
I could scarcely tell them they were wrong.
Recent Examples on the Web
In the state’s five biggest counties, Trump’s point margin improved by 1 point in very blue Milwaukee and Dane, worsened by 1 point in very red Waukesha, and scarcely changed at all in purple Brown and Outagamie, improving by three-tenths of a point.
—Craig Gilbert, Journal Sentinel, 12 Nov. 2024
The Trump campaign, for its part, has scarcely made public mention of the Republicans who supported Nikki Haley and might, despite her endorsement, potentially defect to Harris.
—The New Yorker, 5 Nov. 2024
The impedance scarcely varies from a nominal 6Ω over most of the frequency range.
—Mark Sparrow, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024
There’s scarcely time to think about how much easier things might be after a good night’s sleep, because — surprise!
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 1 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for scarcely 
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Craig Gilbert, Journal Sentinel, 12 Nov. 2024
The Trump campaign, for its part, has scarcely made public mention of the Republicans who supported Nikki Haley and might, despite her endorsement, potentially defect to Harris.
—The New Yorker, 5 Nov. 2024
The impedance scarcely varies from a nominal 6Ω over most of the frequency range.
—Mark Sparrow, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024
There’s scarcely time to think about how much easier things might be after a good night’s sleep, because — surprise!
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 1 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for scarcely
Dictionary Entries Near scarcely
Cite this Entry
“Scarcely.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scarcely. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
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