inwardly
/ˈɪnwədli/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈɪnwərdli/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈin-wərd-lē/ (ame, mw)
inwardly — adverb
1. in a way that involves your hidden thoughts or personal feelings, without showin
in a way that involves your hidden thoughts or personal feelings, without showing them in your face, words, or actions
Ana smiled politely at the joke, but inwardly she felt deeply offended.
contrast between outward expression and inner feeling
During the meeting, Hassan nodded along while inwardly disagreeing with every point.
while inwardly + present participle
Zahra pretended to be calm, but inwardly her heart was racing with fear.
Liam listened to the criticism and thanked his boss, but inwardly he was boiling with anger.
Tariq watched his friend win the race and cheered loudly, but inwardly he felt jealous.
- privately
Very close in meaning but 'privately' can also describe actual one-to-one conversation (e.g. 'I told him privately'), whereas 'inwardly' is always mental.
- secretly
Implies active hiding or concealment from others, while 'inwardly' can simply describe a feeling that is not shown, not necessarily hidden on purpose.
- silently
Focuses only on the lack of speech; 'inwardly' covers all forms of non-expression, including facial reactions and body language.
- outwardly
Direct opposite — describes what is shown on the face or through behaviour.
文法句型
inwardly + verb (felt, disagreed, hoped, smiled, groaned)
while inwardly + present participle
用法筆記
Almost always used to contrast someone's visible outward behaviour with their private inner reaction. Common with verbs of emotion or thought such as feel, disagree, hope, laugh, smile, groan, and boil. Rarely used with physical actions alone — use it with an accompanying mental or emotional state.