I Adverb ˈhɑːdli ˈhɑːrdli Tea Left Bothered Reply

• there's hardly any tea left.
• hardly anyone has bothered to reply.
• she hardly ever calls me (= almost never).
• we hardly know each other.

hardly

1. almost no; almost not; almost none
• There's hardly any tea left.
• Hardly anyone has bothered to reply.
• She hardly ever calls me (= almost never).
• We hardly know each other.
• I had hardly seen my father since that day.
• It hardly seems fair to put all the blame on him.
• Hardly a day goes by without my thinking of her (= I think of her almost every day).
• At the time, I hardly spoke any French.
• There was hardly a cloud in the sky.
2. used especially after ‘can’ or ‘could’ and before the main verb, to emphasize that it is difficult to do something
• I can hardly keep my eyes open (= I'm almost falling asleep).
• I could hardly believe it when I read the letter.
3. used to suggest that something is unlikely or unreasonable or that somebody is silly for saying or doing something
• He is hardly likely to admit he was wrong.
• It's hardly surprising she was fired; she never did any work.
• It's hardly the time to discuss it now.
• You can hardly expect her to do it for free.
• ‘Couldn't you have just said no?’ ‘Well, hardly (= of course not), she's my wife's sister.’
• He’s 24—hardly a baby.
4. used to say that something has just begun, happened, etc.
• We can't stop for coffee now, we've hardly started.
• We had hardly sat down to supper when the phone rang.
• Hardly had she spoken before she regretted it bitterly.