well-nigh

== English == === Etymology === From Middle English wel-neigh (“physically close to; near in time to; almost, nearly; closely”) [and other forms], from Old English wel nēah, wel nēh, from wel (“well”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *welh₁- (“to choose; to want”)) + nēah, nēh (“close, near”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂neḱ- (“to attain, reach”)). Synchronically a univerbation of well (“completely, fully; to a significant degree”) +‎ nigh (“close by, near”). === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation, General American) IPA(key): /ˌwɛlˈnaɪ/ Rhymes: -aɪ === Adverb === well-nigh (not comparable) Almost, nearly. Synonyms: (Britain, dialectal) fornigh, just about, virtually, well-near; see also Thesaurus:almost, Thesaurus:approximately ==== Related terms ==== fornigh nigh nigh on ==== Translations ==== === References ===