What does "downright" mean?
A low grade of wool from the lower parts of the sides of a fleece.
Downright
/ˈdaʊnɹaɪt/ adj, adv, noun
adj, adv, noun ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A low grade of wool from the lower parts of the sides of a fleece.
- Grammar: downright is listed as adj, adv, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: a outrance, absolute, absolute, absolute.
- Useful contrasts: incomplete, limited, partial.
- Usage evidence: The girl was not downright homely.
How to use "downright"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "downright" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "downright" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "downright" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "downright" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "downright" is acting as adj, adv, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "a outrance" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "downright", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A low grade of wool from the lower parts of the sides of a fleece. in-plural, obsolete
"It is ſaid, there are nine Sorts of VVool contained in one good Fleece, vvhich to make out, they ſay, that there are five Sorts for making Cloth, and four for Combings; a ſuperfine VVool, a head VVool, Dovvnrights, Seconds, and Livery."
- 2 A vertical line; a perpendicular, a vertical. obsolete, rare
"[T]he middle of it [i.e., the thigh, is] the prop or thiller, the body the vveight, and the leg the povver; either of vvhich being brought by a ſharp angle to a dovvnright or perpendicular or more, vvith the thiller, vvill by ſo much leſſen the vveight, from the yielded aſſumption in that mechanick povver, That the point, vvhich is toucht by a perpendicular from the centre of heavineſs, is one of the terms: […]"
Adjective
- 1 Absolute, complete. figuratively
"For although in that ancient and diffuſed adoration of IdolLs, unto the Prieſts and ſubtiler heads, the vvorſhip perhaps might be ſymbolicall, and as thoſe Images ſome vvay related unto their deities, yet vvas the Idolatry direct and dovvne-right in the people, vvhoſe credulity is illimitable, vvho may be made believe that any thing is God, and may be made believe there is no God at all."
- 2 Of a person or their behaviour: direct, plain, straightforward; also, of speech: direct and unambiguous; blunt, to the point. figuratively
"The ſay this Angelo vvas not made by Man and VVoman, after this dovvne-right vvay of Creation: is it true, thinke you?"
- 3 Coming straight down; directed vertically. obsolete
"Downeright ſtroke […] taille"
- 4 Chiefly in downright money: in its most basic form; ordinary. figuratively, obsolete
"[T]he merchant's wife, next to her who abounds in plenty, is not to have downright money, but the mercenary part of her mind is engaged with a present of plate, and a little ambition."
Adjective
- 1 complete and without restriction or qualification; sometimes used informally as intensifiers wordnet
- 2 characterized by plain blunt honesty wordnet
Adverb
- 1 Completely, wholly. figuratively, not-comparable
"He wasn’t just cool to me, he was downright rude."
- 2 Of acts or speech: directly and unambiguously; clearly, plainly. archaic, figuratively, not-comparable
"Ros[alind]. Not true in loue? / Cel[ia]. Yes, vvhen he is in, but I thinke he is not in. / Ros. You haue heard him ſvveare dovvnright he vvas."
- 3 Straight down; perpendicularly. not-comparable, obsolete
"Cedentes capilli, heares [hairs] hanging down ryght."
- 4 Immediately at that place and time; without delay; altogether, at once, then and there. figuratively, not-comparable, obsolete
"This is the ſoul that I vvith preſſer quill / Muſt novv purſue and fall upon dovvn-right, […]"
Adverb
- 1 thoroughgoing wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"The girl was not downright homely."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "downright"?
Common synonyms include: a outrance, absolute, absolute, absolute, absolutely, absolutely.
How do you use "downright" in a sentence?
The girl was not downright homely.
How do you pronounce "downright"?
Pronounced /ˈdaʊnɹaɪt/.
Etymology
The adverb is derived from Middle English dounright, dounriȝt (“right down, straight down; face down; vertically; used for emphasis: outright, downright”), and then either: * possibly an aphetic form of adounright (“straight down; directly, immediately (?)”), from adoun (“downward”, adverb) (from Old English adūn, adūne (“down, downward”, adverb), ultimately from dūn (“hill, mountain”), from Proto-West Germanic *dūnā, *dūnu (“hill; sand dune”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewh₂- (“haze, mist; smoke”)) + right (“direct; straight; etc.”, adjective) (from Old English riht (“straight; etc.”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- (“to straighten”)); or * from doun (“down, downward; etc.”, adverb) (from Old English dūne (“down”), ultimately from dūn (“hill, mountain”): see above) + right. By surface analysis, down (adverb) + right (adjective). The adjective and noun are derived from the adverb. Noun noun sense 1 (“low grade of wool”) may be from the obsolete adjective adjective sense 2.2 (“in its most basic form; ordinary”).