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Glite Dictionary
clerkly

clerkly

9.5
Showing a formal, bookish way of speaking or writing
  • adjective
  • /ˈklɜrklɪ/
  • Archaic
translation icon : de clérigo
  • Her clerkly attitude made her the perfect candidate for the academic research team.

Examples

  • He had a clerkly demeanor, often quoting from classic literature during meetings.

  • Many years later, when I was grown up and working in my clerkly profession, Merril came upon me on lower Fifth Avenue.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • But it is a dismal thing when the people's elected representatives, elected to perform certain clerkly tasks for us, take to ruling the citizens.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • The professor's clerkly writing impressed the committee with its depth and scholarly references.

Synonyms

bookish
vsclerkly
10 6.5

A person who likes books and reading more than practical activities

is more scholarly and formal, emphasizing learned administrative style
booky
vsclerkly
  • UK
1 8.4

A person who likes to read and study a lot

is more scholarly and formal, not merely a casual reader

How Bookish

erudite
  • Formal
12 8.4
scholarly
  • Formal
47 5.6
clerkly
  • Archaic
9.5
bookish
10 6.5

Surface Forms

clerkly positive

Morphology

clerkly = clerk (opaque) = clerk + ly

Although transparently formed with the productive suffix '-ly', the adjective reflects an older sense of 'clerk' meaning 'scholar/cleric' rather than the modern 'office worker', so learners who know only the modern sense will not predict the meaning.

Etymology

Clerkly comes from clerk, which long ago meant a church worker who could 'read and write', so a 'clerk' was seen as learned, and the ending -ly makes it 'like a clerk'. That's why clerkly means 'scholarly' or 'bookish'.