surely

Definitions

sure + -ly (in the manner of). In modern use surely often signals the speaker's strong assumption and invites agreement — 'Surely you remember?' (= I can't believe you don't). In 'slowly but surely' it keeps the older, plain sense of 'steadily, dependably.'

Why It Means This

Be careful: 'surely' rarely means a plain 'yes, certainly' in modern speech. More often it carries doubt or appeal — 'Surely that's not true?' means the speaker hopes or assumes it isn't. To simply confirm, use 'certainly' or 'definitely.' The literal 'without fail' sense survives mainly in fixed phrases like 'slowly but surely.'

Common Collocations

• 1.slowly but surely稳扎稳打地
• 2.surely enough果然
• 3.surely not肯定不是吧

Example Sentences

• 1.

  Surely you don't expect me to finish all this by tonight?

• 2.

  Slowly but surely, the town recovered from the flood.

• 3.

  If you study hard, you will surely pass the exam.