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What does “barely perceptibly” mean? [closed]

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Barely perceptibly, he starts to cry.

Does barely perceptibly mean losing control?

british-english phrase-meaning

share|improve this question

edited Mar 24 at 18:01

kiamlaluno

43.9k57183296

asked Mar 24 at 17:58

Shahruz RaadShahruz Raad

172

closed as off-topic by Jason Bassford, kiamlaluno, Hot Licks, TrevorD, alwayslearning Mar 24 at 18:40

This question appears to be off-topic. The users who voted to close gave this specific reason:

• "Please include the research you’ve done, or consider if your question suits our English Language Learners site better. Questions that can be answered using commonly-available references are off-topic." – Jason Bassford, kiamlaluno, Hot Licks, TrevorD, alwayslearning

If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.

• 
  
  
  

  
  2
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  No, it means that his crying is so subdued that it's hard to perceive.
  
  – user888379
  Mar 24 at 18:02
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Look up the two words in a dictionary.
  
  – Hot Licks
  Mar 24 at 18:04
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Signal is just barely above the noise. To determine if it's real, you have to decide how many sigmas you are willing to take for truth: isixsigma.com/new-to-six-sigma/sigma-level/…
  
  – Wayfaring Stranger
  Mar 24 at 19:54
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

0

Barely perceptibly, he starts to cry.

Does barely perceptibly mean losing control?

british-english phrase-meaning

share|improve this question

edited Mar 24 at 18:01

kiamlaluno

43.9k57183296

asked Mar 24 at 17:58

Shahruz RaadShahruz Raad

172

closed as off-topic by Jason Bassford, kiamlaluno, Hot Licks, TrevorD, alwayslearning Mar 24 at 18:40

This question appears to be off-topic. The users who voted to close gave this specific reason:

• "Please include the research you’ve done, or consider if your question suits our English Language Learners site better. Questions that can be answered using commonly-available references are off-topic." – Jason Bassford, kiamlaluno, Hot Licks, TrevorD, alwayslearning

If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.

• 
  
  
  

  
  2
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  No, it means that his crying is so subdued that it's hard to perceive.
  
  – user888379
  Mar 24 at 18:02
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Look up the two words in a dictionary.
  
  – Hot Licks
  Mar 24 at 18:04
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Signal is just barely above the noise. To determine if it's real, you have to decide how many sigmas you are willing to take for truth: isixsigma.com/new-to-six-sigma/sigma-level/…
  
  – Wayfaring Stranger
  Mar 24 at 19:54
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

Barely perceptibly, he starts to cry.

Does barely perceptibly mean losing control?

british-english phrase-meaning

share|improve this question

edited Mar 24 at 18:01

kiamlaluno

43.9k57183296

asked Mar 24 at 17:58

Shahruz RaadShahruz Raad

172

share|improve this question

edited Mar 24 at 18:01

kiamlaluno

43.9k57183296

asked Mar 24 at 17:58

Shahruz RaadShahruz Raad

172

share|improve this question

edited Mar 24 at 18:01

kiamlaluno

43.9k57183296

asked Mar 24 at 17:58

Shahruz RaadShahruz Raad

172

edited Mar 24 at 18:01

kiamlaluno

43.9k57183296

edited Mar 24 at 18:01

kiamlaluno

43.9k57183296

asked Mar 24 at 17:58

Shahruz RaadShahruz Raad

172

asked Mar 24 at 17:58

Shahruz RaadShahruz Raad

172

1 Answer
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If you look at the Oxford online dictionary, you will find

Only just; almost not.

‘she nodded, barely able to speak’
as submodifier ‘a barely perceptible pause’

You might well ask exactly how someone can cry "barely perceptibly" you might well ask. Strictly it ought to mean that he began to cry, and that what was barely perceptible (i.e. almost imperceptible) was his beginning to cry. In that case, you could imagine the person ending up obviously crying, but very gradually: almost imperceptible at first and gradually building up into open grief. The way the passage is phrased suggests this to me. The adverbial phrase "barely perceptibly", placed at the beginning of the sentence and separated by a comma (a move often called 'a fronted adverbial) suggests (to me) that it should modify the clause that follows and so the main verb "starts". On the other hand, common sense suggests that what is probably really modified by the adverbial is the verb crying, and that the crying itself was "barely perceptible."

share|improve this answer

answered Mar 24 at 18:15

TuffyTuffy

4,0891621

add a comment | 

0

If you look at the Oxford online dictionary, you will find

Only just; almost not.

‘she nodded, barely able to speak’
as submodifier ‘a barely perceptible pause’

You might well ask exactly how someone can cry "barely perceptibly" you might well ask. Strictly it ought to mean that he began to cry, and that what was barely perceptible (i.e. almost imperceptible) was his beginning to cry. In that case, you could imagine the person ending up obviously crying, but very gradually: almost imperceptible at first and gradually building up into open grief. The way the passage is phrased suggests this to me. The adverbial phrase "barely perceptibly", placed at the beginning of the sentence and separated by a comma (a move often called 'a fronted adverbial) suggests (to me) that it should modify the clause that follows and so the main verb "starts". On the other hand, common sense suggests that what is probably really modified by the adverbial is the verb crying, and that the crying itself was "barely perceptible."

share|improve this answer

answered Mar 24 at 18:15

TuffyTuffy

4,0891621

add a comment | 

0

If you look at the Oxford online dictionary, you will find

Only just; almost not.

‘she nodded, barely able to speak’
as submodifier ‘a barely perceptible pause’

You might well ask exactly how someone can cry "barely perceptibly" you might well ask. Strictly it ought to mean that he began to cry, and that what was barely perceptible (i.e. almost imperceptible) was his beginning to cry. In that case, you could imagine the person ending up obviously crying, but very gradually: almost imperceptible at first and gradually building up into open grief. The way the passage is phrased suggests this to me. The adverbial phrase "barely perceptibly", placed at the beginning of the sentence and separated by a comma (a move often called 'a fronted adverbial) suggests (to me) that it should modify the clause that follows and so the main verb "starts". On the other hand, common sense suggests that what is probably really modified by the adverbial is the verb crying, and that the crying itself was "barely perceptible."

share|improve this answer

answered Mar 24 at 18:15

TuffyTuffy

4,0891621

add a comment | 

If you look at the Oxford online dictionary, you will find

Only just; almost not.

‘she nodded, barely able to speak’
as submodifier ‘a barely perceptible pause’

You might well ask exactly how someone can cry "barely perceptibly" you might well ask. Strictly it ought to mean that he began to cry, and that what was barely perceptible (i.e. almost imperceptible) was his beginning to cry. In that case, you could imagine the person ending up obviously crying, but very gradually: almost imperceptible at first and gradually building up into open grief. The way the passage is phrased suggests this to me. The adverbial phrase "barely perceptibly", placed at the beginning of the sentence and separated by a comma (a move often called 'a fronted adverbial) suggests (to me) that it should modify the clause that follows and so the main verb "starts". On the other hand, common sense suggests that what is probably really modified by the adverbial is the verb crying, and that the crying itself was "barely perceptible."

share|improve this answer

answered Mar 24 at 18:15

TuffyTuffy

4,0891621

share|improve this answer

answered Mar 24 at 18:15

TuffyTuffy

4,0891621

answered Mar 24 at 18:15

TuffyTuffy

4,0891621

answered Mar 24 at 18:15

TuffyTuffy

4,0891621