scarcely
gb/skˈɛɹsli/ us/skˈɛɹsli/
B2
English
~ 900
alig, alighogy
B2
1
alig
A2
Usage pattern:
scarcely [verb]
I could scarcely hear what she was saying over the noise.
A zaj miatt alig hallottam, mit mond.
There was scarcely enough food for everyone at the party.
Alig volt elég étel mindenkinek a partin.
He had scarcely finished speaking when the phone rang.
The light was so dim I could scarcely make out his face.
We had scarcely begun our walk when it started to rain.
Learner examples
I can scarcely see the road in this fog.
Alig látom az utat ebben a ködben.
We have scarcely any milk left.
Alig maradt tejünk.
She could scarcely move after the long run.
He had scarcely closed the door when someone knocked again.
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse 'scarcely' with 'rarely'. 'Scarcely' means 'almost not', while 'rarely' means 'not often'.
Meaning
almost not; barely
Collocations
scarcely believe
|scarcely enough
|scarcely visible
|could scarcely
|scarcely had
Synonyms
barely (Very close in meaning; often interchangeable but 'barely' is slightly more common in everyday speech.)
|
hardly (Nearly identical in meaning; 'hardly' is more frequent in informal contexts.)
Antonyms
easily (Opposite in that it suggests something is done without difficulty or limitation.)
|
plenty (Opposite in that it indicates more than enough rather than almost none.)
Themes
daily life
|time
|degree
|core_vocabulary
Definition
Used to say that something happens only a little or almost not at all.
Used to say that something happens only just, or is almost not the case.
B2
2
alighogy
B2
Usage pattern:
scarcely [past perfect verb] when [past tense verb]
I had scarcely sat down when the bell rang.
Alighogy leültem, megszólalt a csengő.
She had scarcely arrived before they started asking her questions.
Alighogy megérkezett, máris kérdéseket kezdtek feltenni neki.
We had scarcely begun to eat when the lights went out.
Learner examples
I had scarcely opened the book when my phone rang.
Alighogy kinyitottam a könyvet, megszólalt a telefonom.
She had scarcely finished her homework when her friend called.
Alighogy befejezte a házi feladatát, felhívta egy barátja.
They had scarcely started the game when it began to rain.
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes forget to use the past perfect in the first clause with this structure.
Meaning
only just before
Collocations
scarcely had...when
|scarcely was...before
Synonyms
hardly (Very close in meaning and often interchangeable in this time-sequence sense.)
Antonyms
long before (Indicates a large amount of time passed before the second event.)
Themes
time
|sequence
|core_vocabulary
Definition
Shows that something happened right before something else happened.
Used to emphasize that one event happened immediately before another.
Grammar
Dictionary form
scarcely
IPA
GB/skˈɛɹsli/
US/skˈɛɹsli/
Syllables & stress
scarcely (1 syllable)
Stress on 1st syllable (scarcely)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: scarcely
- Plural: scarcelies
Word family
Expressions
could scarcely believe
1/kˈʊd skˈɛɹsli bɪlˈiv/
fixed phrase
almost unable to believe something
To be very surprised because something seems almost impossible.
Examples
- I could scarcely believe my eyes when I saw the price.
- She could scarcely believe her luck when she won the prize.
scarcely any
1/skˈɛɹsli ˈɛni/
fixed phrase
almost none; hardly any
Almost no amount or number of something.
Examples
- There is scarcely any milk left in the fridge.
- Scarcely any students attended the lecture.
scarcely had...when
1/skˈɛɹsli hˈædwˈɛn/
fixed phrase
one event follows another instantly
Used to say that one thing happened right before another thing happened.
Examples
- Scarcely had I stepped outside when it started to snow.
- Scarcely had they arrived when the meeting began.