MILDLY Synonyms: 96 Similar and Opposite Words

mildly

adverb

Definition of mildly

as in lightly

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

as in passively

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of mildly The first incorporates a heady blend of cinnamon, clove, garlic, various chile powders and guajillo paste for a fruity, earthy flavor that’s mildly smoky. — Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026 The movie played well at a packed Alice Tully Hall, and afterparty revelers were mildly upbeat. — Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 3 Oct. 2026 The trade-off is staying at least mildly engaged with their 401(k). — Stuart Robertson, Forbes.com, 2 Oct. 2026 Still, the dialogue can be witty, and the conflicts, whether racial, sexist or classist, are mildly amusing. — Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 25 Sep. 2026 Simply douse it with mildly alkaline water, and the polymer begins degrading, breaking down within minutes. — New Atlas, 21 Sep. 2026 Arkansas State quarterback Trey Owens had plenty of time to operate in the pocket, TCU was just mildly lucky that his accuracy was off in the first half. — Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 20 Sep. 2026 Even fully healthy, this is a unit that, the last few years, has struggled at the tackle position — and that might be putting it mildly. — Scott Chasen, Kansas City Star, 14 Sep. 2026 The head of Germany’s central bank told CNBC on Friday that persistently higher energy prices could spur the European Central Bank to move interest rates into mildly restrictive territory to combat inflation. — Jenni Reid, CNBC, 11 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for mildly

Adverb

Dress the green and red baby gem lettuce with enough Caesar dressing to coat lightly.

— ABC News, ABC News, 2 Oct. 2026
The pressure might wear on another actor, but Zada carries the weight of such company lightly.

— Rebecca Ford, Vanity Fair, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of lightly

Adverb

Upon landing, the craft passively self-rights and transitions its dual wingsails to wind propulsion without active morphing, achieving a high 91 percent effective mass usage across air and water.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 30 Sep. 2026
The film instead passively constructs Tessa’s world as a colorblind one, in which racial difference simply never comes up.

— Beandrea July, IndieWire, 14 Sep. 2026

Definition of passively

Adverb

But the man simply stood there with a dazed expression on his face, swaying gently in the living room of their small, cramped flat, like a lone tree in the breeze.

— Rachel Heng, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2026
The play is a gently unfolding, calmly delivered tale of the decades of horrors endured by a real-life person named Eddie Jaku.

— Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of gently

Adverb

The journey moves through several rooms jumbling period French architecture, the first meekly lit with artificial moonlight and video monitors that flicker out from cracks in the wall.

— Miles Socha, Footwear News, 30 Sep. 2026
His recollections often take the form of dialogues in which interlocutors meekly acknowledge his overwhelming rhetorical advantage.

— Ian Parker, New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2026

Definition of meekly

Adverb

However, critics have complained to the county board of supervisors that the sheriff was treated more leniently than the average citizen would have been.

— Michael Ruiz, FOXNews.com, 9 June 2026
The document also reopened the controversy around Jannik Sinner’s doping ban, claiming that he was treated leniently by the ITIA.

— Charlie Eccleshare, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026

Definition of leniently

Adverb

Once the players returned to the field, Diaz inexplicably tried a Panenka-style chip and his weak penalty sailed tamely into the arms of Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.

— Reuters, NBC news, 18 Jan. 2026
Dominik Szoboszlai had just squandered a golden chance by firing tamely into the arms of Emiliano Martinez after winning the ball back high up the field when the Kop parked their frustration and vocally declared their unwavering faith in the Dutchman.

— James Pearce, New York Times, 2 Nov. 2025

Definition of tamely

Adverb

To do the job, Lowen must temporarily move into the author’s home, a coolly lavish modern house in rural Vermont, where Verity’s many boxes of files are stored—and where, of course, Jeremy also lives.

— Richard Brody, New Yorker, 30 Sep. 2026
Murray reacted coolly as the ice water cascaded over him, standing up and clapping his hands while walking it off.

— Kels Dayton, Hartford Courant, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of coolly

Browse Nearby Words

mildewy

mildly

mildness

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Mildly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mildly. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of mildly

adverb

Example Sentences

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