Incredibly

/ɪnˈkredəbli/

adverbBeginnerVery CommonGeneral

Definitions

1

To an astonishing or unbelievable degree; extremely.

/ɪnˈkredəbli/

adverbpositiveBeginner
General

To a degree that is very difficult to believe; extraordinarily

The magician performed an incredibly skillful trick.

💡 Simply: When something is 'incredibly' good, it's like…WOW! It’s amazing, surprising, and totally awesome, maybe even too good to be true!

👶 For kids: When something is incredibly good, it's super, super good, like the best ever!

More Examples

2

She was incredibly pleased with the results.

3

The book was incredibly boring.

How It's Used

General Conversation

"The sunset was incredibly beautiful."

Science/Research

"The data showed incredibly complex patterns."

News/Media

"The company's profits rose incredibly."

From 'in-' (not) + 'credible' (believable), ultimately from Latin 'credere' (to believe). The suffix '-ly' turns the adjective 'incredible' into an adverb.

Used since the mid-17th century, evolving from its root meaning of 'not believable' to encompass a broader sense of 'extremely' or 'astonishingly'.

Memory tip

Think of something so amazing it's hard to believe. That's incredibly!

Word Origin

Root: credere

increadiblyincredibilyincredably

Usage

60%Spoken
40%Written