hardly

• Adverbio que significa «apenas» o «casi no». Se usa para indicar que algo es escasamente cierto o que ocurre en muy pequeña medida. A pesar de su forma, no significa «con dificultad» y tiene valor negativo.

An adverb meaning 'barely' or 'almost not.' It is used to indicate that something is only just true or occurs to a very small degree. Despite its form, it does not mean 'in a hard manner' and has a negative meaning.

1. Barely or almost notB1formal

   Used to indicate that something is almost not true or almost does not happen.

   apenas, casi no

   • I can hardly hear you over the noise.
   • She hardly ever eats breakfast.
   • He hardly had time to finish the report.

   Sinónimosbarelyfaintlyjustrarelyscarcelyslightly

   Antónimosabsolutelycompletelyentirelyfullytotally

2. Certainly notB2formal

   Used to emphasize that something is not true or not possible.

   ciertamente no

   • This is hardly the time to joke.
   • You can hardly blame him for being upset.
   • That is hardly a fair comparison.

   Sinónimosbarelyby no meansscarcely