Nearby Words

Firmly

[furm] Origin

firm

1[furm] adjective, -er, -est, verb, adverb, -er, -est.
adjective
1.
not soft or yielding when pressed; comparatively solid, hard, stiff, or rigid: firm ground; firm texture.
2.
securely fixed in place.
3.
not shaking or trembling; steady: a firm voice.
4.
not likely to change; fixed; settled; unalterable: a firm belief.
5.
steadfast or unwavering, as persons or principles: firm friends.
EXPAND
6.
indicating firmness or determination: a firm expression.
7.
not fluctuating much or falling, as prices, values, etc.: The stock market was firm today.
COLLAPSE
verb (used with object)
8.
to make firm; tighten or strengthen (sometimes followed by up): to firm up one's hold on something.
9.
to steady or fix (sometimes followed by up): to firm up prices.

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Firmly is always a great word to know.
So is interrobang. Does it mean:
an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.
a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.
verb (used without object)
10.
to become firm or fixed (sometimes followed by up): Butter firms by churning.
11.
(of prices, markets, etc.) to recover; become stronger, as after a decline (sometimes followed by up): Stock prices firmed again today.
adverb
12.
firmly: He stood firm.

Origin:
1300–50; < Latin firmus; replacing Middle English ferm < Middle French < Latin

firm·ly, adverb
firm·ness, noun


1. Firm, hard, solid, stiff are applied to substances that tend to retain their form unaltered in spite of pressure or force. Firm often implies that something has been brought from a yielding state to a fixed or elastic one: An increased amount of pectin makes jellies firm. Hard is applied to substances so resistant that it is difficult to make any impression upon their surface or to penetrate their interior: as hard as a stone. Solid is applied to substances that without external support retain their form and resist pressure: Water in the form of ice is solid. It sometimes denotes the opposite of hollow: a solid block of marble. Stiff implies rigidity that resists a bending force: as stiff as a poker. 2. fast, stable, immovable. 4. established, confirmed. 5. determined, immovable, staunch, reliable.


1. yielding, soft.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
firm1 (fɜːm)
 
adj
1.  not soft or yielding to a touch or pressure; rigid; solid
2.  securely in position; stable or stationary
3.  definitely established; decided; settled
4.  enduring or steady; constant
5.  having determination or strength; resolute
6.  (of prices, markets, etc) tending to rise
 
adv
7.  in a secure, stable, or unyielding manner: he stood firm over his obligation to pay
 
vb
8.  (sometimes foll by up) to make or become firm
9.  (Austral) (intr) horse racing (of a horse) to shorten in odds
 
[C14: from Latin firmus]
 
'firmly1
 
adv
 
'firmness1
 
n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

firm
c.1300, fermen "make firm, establish," from O.Fr. fermer, from L. firmare, from firmus (see firm (adj.)). Related: Firmed; firming.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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