well-nigh
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well-nigh
- /ˌwɛlˈnaɪ/ US, UK
Rhymes with -aɪ
Where it comes from
From Middle English wel-neigh (“physically close to; near in time to; almost, nearly; closely”) [and other forms], from Old English wel nēah, wel nēh, from wel (“well”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *welh₁- (“to choose; to want”)) + nēah, nēh (“close, near”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂neḱ- (“to attain, reach”)). Synchronically a univerbation of well (“completely, fully; to a significant degree”) + nigh (“close by, near”).
adverb
-
Almost, nearly.
The ſame ſo ſore annoyed has the Knight, / That welnigh choked with the deadly ſtinke, / His forces faile, ne can no lenger fight.
Similar: fornigh, just about, virtually, well-near, all but, almost, as good as, as near as makes no difference, close to, more or less, near, near as damn it
Translations
Talk about this word "well-nigh." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/well-nigh. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. well-nigh. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/well-nigh "well-nigh." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/well-nigh.Cite this
@misc{well_nigh_2026,
title = {well-nigh},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/well-nigh},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
