From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishhighlyhigh‧ly /ˈhaɪli/ ●●● S2 W2 adverb 1 [+adj, adverb]VERY veryhighly successful/effective/efficient a highly successful politician Tom’s mother was highly critical of the school’s approach. highly competitive industries a highly desirable neighborhoodhighly unlikely/likely/improbable/probable It’s highly unlikely that the project will be finished on time. T.S. Eliot’s highly influential poem, ‘The Waste Land’ a highly controversial issue2 [+adj, adverb]VERY to a high level or standardhighly skilled/trained/educated She is a highly educated woman. highly paid experts a highly developed economy3 → highly placed4 → highly strung5 GOOD/EXCELLENTif you think highly of someone or something, you think they are very good and you admire themthink/speak highly of somebody I’ve always thought very highly of Michael. a highly regarded author
Examples from the Corpus
highly• The demand for highly educated workers is still increasing.• As little as 55 pounds of highly enriched uranium or 18 pounds of plutonium could be used to build a nuclear device.• a highly flammable liquid• Danger: highly flammable materials!• An entrance exam guides students into one of four academic tracks, ranging from highly gifted to remedial.• He's a highly gifted young singer.• In others, we see evidence of females highly honored and males almost disregarded.• Branding the Black Chamber highly illegal, he at once directed that all its State Department funds be cut off.• This last is not so easy as it may seem, but can be highly illuminating.• At the same time, shoppers are becoming highly receptive to new technology.• Our engineers are highly skilled and very difficult to replace when they leave.• She arrived in Australia as a refugee, but went on to become a highly successful lawyer.• However, such an outcome seems highly unlikely in the present political climate.• I think it's highly unlikely that Bob had anything to do with the theft.highly unlikely/likely/improbable/probable• Given this, movement away from the primate city to the poor rural regions becomes highly improbable.• Personally I thought this highly unlikely.• Scores of anecdotes in this book make these figures look highly unlikely.• But it is still highly improbable, a fluke of nature, not a predictable outcome.• However, such an outcome seems highly unlikely in the present political climate.• Investors realize that it is highly improbable that events will turn out as expected.• It is highly unlikely that semiconductor designs will be considered to be artistic works.highly skilled/trained/educated• Nurses were more highly educated and accountable for their actions as professionals than they used to be.• San Diegans also are highly educated, have current passports and subscribe to cable in large numbers.• Scientific wages have already started to respond to what is effectively a new cheap source of very highly skilled labor.• Keeping highly skilled sailors in the Navy also is a challenge.• Instead there seems to be an increasing amount of discontent among people, especially the more highly educated sections of society.• So many of our players are highly skilled, spontaneous passers.• Mrs Gorbachev was a highly educated woman-a professor of Marxist-Leninist theory.• As a result, in many countries, the wage gap between lowly and highly skilled workers has widened sharply.highly regarded• The most highly regarded also had an articulate vision, going beyond vapid cliches of what the nation should become.• This is highly regarded and influential in police circles and the social worker would do well to be aware of its thinking.• Oldman was totally dedicated to the department and was highly regarded by his colleagues.• Darjeeling Known as the champagne tea and highly regarded for afternoon drinking.• The artist is highly regarded internationally and has exhibited in many countries.• Biondi, a highly regarded numbers cruncher, was seen as the man who was supposed to know about the reserve fund.• He has appointed a highly regarded three-star Marine general, James L.. Jones, to be his military assistant. 