well and truly

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˌwɛl n̩ ˈtɹuːli/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˌwɛl n̩ ˈtɹuli/

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• Rhymes: -uːli
• Hyphenation: well and tru‧ly

Adverb

well and truly (not comparable)

1. (idiomatic) Completely; utterly; without doubt.

   Many people remained in their hiding places until the war was well and truly over.

   • 1759, [Laurence Sterne], chapter XV, in The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, 2nd (1st London) edition, volume I, London: R and J Dodsley , published 1760, →OCLC, pages 82–83:

     [T]he ſaid intended marriage to be had, and, by God's bleſſing, to be well and truly ſolemnized and conſummated between the ſaid Walter Shandy and Elizabeth Mollineux aforeſaid, […]

   • 1792 September, O. , “Art. XIII. Proceedings in an Action for Debt, between the Right Hon. Charles James Fox, Plaintiff, and John Horne Tooke, Defendant. Published by the Defendant. 85 Pa. Pr. 25. Johnson. 1792. [book review]”, in The Analytical Review, or History of Literature, Domestic and Foreign. , volume XIV, number 1, London: J Johnson, , →OCLC, page 54:

     Now then, gentlemen, I beg you to weigh well in your minds; conſider ſeriously—for what are you called here this day?—Conſider, I beg of you;—what have you now ſworn to perform?—You have ſolemnly ſworn, that "you will well and truly try the iſſue between the parties." You have ſworn to try it: well and truly to try it. Now, pray, what is the iſſue? Mr. Fox aſſerts that I owe him about 200 l., which I deny. Now the queſtion between us is, whether debt or not. That is the iſſue which you have ſworn to try; to try it well; and truly to try it.

Translations

Further reading

• “well and truly, phrase” under “truly, adv. (and int.) and n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, September 2021.
• “well and truly, phrase”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.