Likely vs Proper - What's the difference?
likely | proper |
probable; having a greater-than-even chance of occurring
probable
*{{quote-news, year=2013, date=April 9, author=Andrei Lankov, title=Stay Cool. Call North Korea’s Bluff., work=New York Times
, passage=People who talk about an imminent possibility of war seldom pose this question: What would North Korea’s leadership get from unleashing a war that they are likely to lose in weeks, if not days?}}
appropriate, suitable; believable; having a good potential
plausible; Within the realm of credibility
* {{quote-news
, year=2011
, date=December 19
, author=Kerry Brown
, title=Kim Jong-il obituary
, work=The Guardian
promising; Apt to achieve success or yield a desired outcome
attractive; pleasant
Reasonably to be expected; apparently destined.
* {{quote-news
, year=2011
, date=November 3
, author=Chris Bevan
, title=Rubin Kazan 1 - 0 Tottenham
, work=BBC Sport
(obsolete) Similar; like; alike.
(obsolete) Similarly.
Probably.
*, chapter=1
, title= Something or somebody considered likely.
(lb) Suitable.
#Suited or acceptable to the purpose or circumstances; fit, suitable.
#:
#*(Alexander Pope) (1688-1744)
#*:The proper study of mankind is man.
#*{{quote-magazine, date=2014-06-14, volume=411, issue=8891, magazine=(The Economist)
, title= #Following the established standards of behavior or manners; correct or decorous.
#:
#*
#*:This new-comer was a man who in any company would have seemed striking.Indeed, all his features were in large mold, like the man himself, as though he had come from a day when skin garments made the proper garb of men.
(lb) Possessed, related.
#(lb) Used to designate a particular person, place, or thing. Proper words are usually written with an initial capital letter.
#Pertaining exclusively to a specific thing or person; particular.
#*, II.1.3:
#*:They have a proper saint almost for every peculiar infirmity: for poison, gouts, agues.
#*(Samuel Taylor Coleridge) (1772-1834)
#*:those high and peculiar attributeswhich constitute our proper humanity
#(lb) Belonging to oneself or itself; own.
#*(William Shakespeare) (1564-1616)
#*:my proper son
#*(John Dryden) (1631-1700)
#*:Now learn the difference, at your proper cost, / Betwixt true valour and an empty boast.
#*, II.4.1.ii:
#*:every country, and more than that, every private place, hath his proper remedies growing in it, particular almost to the domineering and most frequent maladies of it.
#*1946 , (Bertrand Russell), (A History of Western Philosophy) , I.20:
#*:Each animal has its proper' pleasure, and the ' proper pleasure of man is connected with reason.
#(lb) Portrayed in natural or usual coloration, as opposed to conventional tinctures.
#
(lb) Accurate, strictly applied.
#Excellent, of high quality; such as the specific person or thing should ideally be. (Now often merged with later senses.)
#:
#
#*1526 , (William Tyndale), trans. Bible , (w) VII:
#*:The same tyme was Moses borne, and was a propper childe in the sight of God, which was norisshed up in his fathers housse thre monethes.
#In the very strictest sense of the word (now often as postmodifier).
#*, Episode 16:
#*:Though unusual in the Dublin area he knew that it was not by any means unknown for desperadoes who had next to nothing to live on to be abroad waylaying and generally terrorising peaceable pedestrians by placing a pistol at their head in some secluded spot outside the city proper .
#
#:
(Scotland) properly; thoroughly; completely
* 1964 , Saint Andrew Society (Glasgow, Scotland), The Scots magazine: Volume 82
(nonstandard, slang) properly
* 2012 , (Soufside), Hello (song)
As adjectives the difference between likely and proper
is that likely is probable; having a greater-than-even chance of occurring while proper is (lb) suitable .As adverbs the difference between likely and proper
is that likely is (obsolete) similarly while proper is (scotland) properly; thoroughly; completely.As a noun likely
is something or somebody considered likely.likely
English
Adjective
(en-adj)- Rain is likely later this afternoon.
- They are likely to become angry with him.
citation
- Jones is a likely candidate for management.
- not a very likely excuse.
citation, page= , passage=The DPRK propagated an extraordinary tale of his birth occurring on Mount Baekdu, one of Korea's most revered sites, being accompanied by shooting stars in the sky. It is more likely that he was born in a small village in the USSR, while his father was serving as a Soviet-backed general during the second world war.}}
- a likely topic for investigation.
- found a likely spot under a shady tree for the picnic.
- He is likely to succeed at anything he tries.
citation, page= , passage=In truth, Tottenham never really looked like taking all three points and this defeat means they face a battle to reach the knockout stages -with their next home game against PAOK Salonika on 30 November likely to prove decisive.}}
- (Spenser)
Synonyms
* liableAdverb
(en adverb)Mr. Pratt's Patients, chapter=1 , passage=Thinks I to myself, “Sol, you're run off your course again. This is a rich man's summer ‘cottage’ and if you don't look out there's likely to be some nice, lively dog taking an interest in your underpinning.”}}
Usage notes
* As an adverb, likely is often preceded by a modifier such as (most) or (quite). * Some usage guides consider adverbial likely'' - instead of ''probably - to be poor style and an artificial, sometimes pretentious way to imply a sense of erudition. One can also opt for the somewhat rarer adverbial form likelily.Noun
(likelies)proper
English
(wikipedia proper)Alternative forms
* propre (obsolete)Adjective
(en adjective)It's a gas, passage=One of the hidden glories of Victorian engineering is proper drains. Isolating a city’s effluent and shipping it away in underground sewers has probably saved more lives than any medical procedure except vaccination.}}
Synonyms
* correct, right, apt, prudent, sensible, fitting * appropriate, decent, good, polite, right, well-mannered * appropriate, just, honorable * comprehensive, royal, sweeping, intensive * (true) full, complete * complete, right (informal), total, utterAntonyms
* incorrect, wrong, bad, imprudent, insensible * inappropriate, indecent, bad, impolite, wrong, ill-mannered, unseemly * inappropriate, unjust, dishonorable * partial, incomplete, superficial, slapdash * (true) incompleteSee also
* proper adjective * proper fraction * proper nounAdverb
(-)- Don't you think you must have looked proper daft?
- When I meet a bad chick, know I gotta tell her hello
- talk real proper , but she straight up out the ghetto