Where Does the Word Slovenliness Come from?

Word History: This word probably originates in some Germanic source, compare Middle Flemish sloovin "a scold" and sloef "untidy, shabby", Dutch sloffen "to shuffle, dodder", and Middle Low German sloven "to put on clothes carelessly".

What does slovenliness mean?

: messy or untidy. : done in a careless way : sloppy. See the full definition for slovenly in the English Language Learners Dictionary. slovenly. adjective.

Where did the word really originate?

really (adv.)

The general sense is from early 15c. Purely emphatic use dates from c. 1600, "indeed," sometimes as a corroboration, sometimes as an expression of surprise or a term of protest; interrogative use (as in oh, really?) is recorded from 1815.