eagerly
Americanadverb
Etymology
Origin of eagerly
Explanation
If you do something eagerly, you do it with much excitement and enthusiasm. When it's your turn to hit the piñata at a party, you might grab the bat eagerly because you can't wait to take a swing. If you skip breakfast and lunch, you'll eat dinner eagerly, and if you collect stamps, you might eagerly examine every stamped envelope you come across, in case you can add it to your collection. Anything done with an eager attitude is done eagerly. Interestingly, eager has changed in meaning over the years — in the 13th century it meant "fierce or angry," from the Latin acrem, "pointed, piercing, or zealous."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"We're now eagerly waiting to see if a new island is about to be born -- something that we've only rarely been able to observe with satellites as it happens," Garvin said.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 10, 2026
My father eagerly defended his country without asking for anything in return.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
Many children, she said, come to school hungry and wait eagerly for lunch every day.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
The court, in an eagerly awaited decision on the final day of its term, ruled 6-3 to maintain the right to American citizenship for nearly everyone born on US soil.
From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026
When he asked William to reenlist and join his team, William eagerly signed up for the required tests.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.