Forms: 4 bestly, 6 -lie, (beasly), beastlie, -lye, 6– beastly. [f. BEAST sb. + -LY2.] After the manner or likeness of a beast.
† 1. In a beastly manner, like a beast. Obs.
c. 1400. Apol. Loll., 58. Onclen suyn, fyling oþer, lyfing bestly, are sett in þe kirk.
1513. More, Rich. III. (1641), 459. Hee would bite and chew beasly his nether lip.
1514. Barclay, Cyt. & Uplondyshm. (1847), Introd. 51. Some jangle when they be beastly fed.
1562. Bulleyn, Bk. Sicke Men, 77 b. Wastyng their wealthe … foolishely, and moste beastly.
1596. Shaks., Tam. Shr., IV. ii. 35. Fie on her, see how beastly she doth court him.
1652. Gaule, Magastrom., 371. Bellantius … was most beastly murdered.
2. As adjunct to an adj.: Brutishly, brutally, abominably, offensively. (In society slang, often merely = Exceedingly.)
1561. T. Norton, Calvin’s Inst., I. 25. So beastly folish are men. Ibid., 23 b. They are to much beastly witted.
1803. Bristed, Pedest. Tour, I. 298. He … comes home every morning about two or three o’clock quite beastly drunk.
1844. Dickens, Lett., I. 130. I was so beastly dirty when I got to this house.
[1865. Daily Tel., 23 Oct., 5/3. He was in good health, nay, hew was even ruddy—looked almost ‘beastly well,’ as I once heard it described—but he staggered.]
