Hypertext Webster Gateway: "motherly"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Motherly \Moth"er*ly\, a. [AS. m[=o]dorlic.]
Of or pertaining to a mother; like, or suitable for, a
mother; tender; maternal; as, motherly authority, love, or
care. --Hooker.
Syn: Maternal; paternal.
Usage: {Motherly}, {Maternal}. Motherly, being Anglo-Saxon,
is the most familiar word of the two when both have
the same meaning. Besides this, maternal is confined
to the feelings of a mother toward her own children,
whereas motherly has a secondary sense, denoting a
care like that of a mother for her offspring. There
is, perhaps, a growing tendency thus to separate the
two, confining motherly to the latter signification.
``They termed her the great mother, for her motherly
care in cherishing her brethren whilst young.'' --Sir
W. Raleigh.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Motherly \Moth"er*ly\, adv.
In a manner of a mother.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
motherly
adj : befitting a mother; warm and nurturing
adv : in a maternal manner; as a mother; "she loved her students
almost maternally" [syn: {maternally}]
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