barely

adverb

1. only just; scarcely; no more than; almost not: He had barely enough money to pay for the car.
2. without disguise or concealment; openly: They gave the facts to him barely.
3. scantily; meagerly; sparsely.
4. Archaic. merely.

adverb

1. only just; scarcelybarely enough for their needs
2. informal not quite; nearlybarely old enough
3. scantily; poorlybarely furnished
4. archaic openly

adv.

Old English bærlice “openly, clear, public;” see bare (adj.) + -ly (2). Meaning “only, just” is recorded from late 15c.; that of “merely, simply” is from 1570s. In 15c. it also could mean “naked.”