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Glite Dictionary
🚫 Without religion 📈 Long-term change
secularly

secularly

8.0
In a way that shows a long-term rise or fall
  • adverb
  • /ˈsɛkjələrli/
  • Specialized
translation icon : secularmente
  • Although the IMF agreement certainly had the effect of accelerating the flow of FDI into Korea, it is important to note that FDI had been rising secularly even before the crisis.

Examples

  • The population has been aging secularly, with more elderly individuals entering the demographic statistics each year.

  • Market trends have secularly shifted towards sustainable practices, reflecting changing consumer preferences.

  • FDI in the region has increased secularly over the past decade, indicating sustained economic growth.

How Long-Term

permanently
218 2.9
secularly
  • Specialized
8.0
temporarily
222 3.2

Surface Forms

secularly positive

Morphology

secularly = secular (semi-transparent) = secular + ly

Formed by '-ly' from 'secular', but the specialized economic/demographic sense 'long-term, non-cyclical' is an extension that may not be obvious to learners who only know the common 'non-religious' sense.

Etymology

The word secularly also comes from the Latin root saeculum 'age', and you can think of it as 'over an age' or a long time. So when people say something changes secularly, they mean it is a slow, long-term trend rather than a short cycle.