What does hostly mean?
Hostly is an old-fashioned adjective meaning hospitable, friendly, or welcoming, especially toward guests and visitors. It describes the warmth and generosity of a person who receives others into their home or looks after travellers. The word can also characterize a welcoming act, such as a hostly welcome or a hostly manner, although such expressions now sound deliberately traditional or literary. Its use is rare in contemporary English, where hospitable is generally clearer and more familiar. Hostly should not be confused with hostile, its opposite: although both words are pronounced similarly in English, hostly conveys kindness and hospitality, whereas hostile suggests antagonism or unfriendliness. Because the term survives chiefly in older writing and elevated prose, encountering it may provide a useful glimpse of the vocabulary of hospitality and social welcome.
adjectiveHospitable or friendly toward guests and visitors. The word is now archaic or literary rather than common in everyday English.
- Hospitable, friendly, or welcoming toward guests or visitors.
"The hostly family welcomed every traveller who came to their door."
"Her hostly manner put even the most awkward visitors at ease."
"The innkeeper offered them a bed and a hostly welcome."
Once an ordinary word for a welcoming host, hostly now survives mainly in old books, poetry, and formal prose.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does hostly come from?
Hostly was formed from host, in the older sense of a person who receives or entertains guests, with the adjective-forming suffix -ly. The same base belongs to a wider family drawn from Latin hospit-, meaning guest or host, which also produced hospitable, hospitality, hostel, and hospital. The adjective has the sense of hospitable or welcoming toward guests, reflecting the social role associated with a host.
Related word forms
How hostly is actually used
Rare and chiefly archaic or literary. In modern English, hospitable, welcoming, and friendly are normally preferred.