Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Relating to or resembling a needle or needles: as, a needly thorn.
  • Necessarily.
  • Urgently.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adverb obsolete Necessarily; of necessity.
  • adjective Like a needle or needles

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Like a needle or needles.
  • adverb archaic Zealously; carefully; earnestly.
  • adverb archaic Necessarily; of necessity.
  • adverb archaic Urgently.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From needle +‎ -y.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English needely, neodliche, from Old English nēodlīċe ("eagerly, earnestly, carefully, zealously, diligently, sedulously; greatly"), equivalent to need (“desire”) +‎ -ly. Cognate with Old Saxon niudlīko ("zealously, carefully"), German niedlich ("desirable, appealing, lovely, cute").

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English needely, nedelich, from Old English *nīedlīċe (“necessarily”), from nīedlīc ("necessary"), equivalent to need (“necessity, need”) +‎ -ly. Merged with Etymology 1 above. Cognate with Middle Dutch nodelike, Middle Low German nōtliken, Middle High German nōtliche.

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Examples

  • In one case, a child walking along the beach stepped on a needly oursin.

    Remedies 2009

  • They are helping the most needly, and arent we all judged one day by the good and bad, arent nations judged by how they treat their mosty needy?

    House Dems to levy new tax on wealthy to pay for health care 2009

  • In one case, a child walking along the beach stepped on a needly oursin.

    mise en bouteille / wine bottling 2009

  • In one case, a child walking along the beach stepped on a needly oursin.

    Smokey 2010

  • In one case, a child walking along the beach stepped on a needly oursin.

    Smokey 2010

  • In one case, a child walking along the beach stepped on a needly oursin.

    mise en bouteille / wine bottling 2009

  • Herbivorous mammals like horses, cattle and elephants have great millstone-like teeth for grinding cellulose, quite different from the shearing teeth of carnivores and the needly teeth of insectivores.

    THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH RICHARD DAWKINS 2009

  • Herbivorous mammals like horses, cattle and elephants have great millstone-like teeth for grinding cellulose, quite different from the shearing teeth of carnivores and the needly teeth of insectivores.

    THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH RICHARD DAWKINS 2009

  • In one case, a child walking along the beach stepped on a needly oursin.

    Remedies 2009

  • Dem hollowy needly hares make dem so warm dat dey hab da truble koolin off eben way up in da usedtobefrozen Nort.

    i can has - Lolcats 'n' Funny Pictures of Cats - I Can Has Cheezburger? 2008

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