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I often notice inconsistencies in word formations. The word "bad" becomes "badly" by adding the suffix "-ly" to form an adverb. Similarly, "good" would be expected to become "goodly" following the same pattern. However, the correct adverb form of "good" is actually "well" as explained in the past question of EL&U: The Use of "Goodly" that unfortunately focuses on using the word 'goodly' as an adjective which has actually become archaic.

What's the historical or linguistic reason behind this irregularity? Why does "good" not follow the same pattern as "bad" to become "goodly", which is actually an archaic or poetic word with a different meaning?"

It's similar to other such patterns like:

  • Fast to fastly: "Fast" becomes "fast" (not "fastly") when used as an adverb, whereas "good" becomes "well" (not "goodly").
  • Hard to hardly: "Hard" becomes "hard" (not "hardly") when used as an adverb, whereas "hardly" means "barely" or "scarcely".
  • Far to farther/furthest: "Far" has irregular comparative and superlative forms, whereas most adjectives would follow a more predictable pattern (e.g., "big" to "bigger" to "biggest").
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    Because goodly is an adjective and perhaps that necessitated a different adverbial form of good. That said, every language has its quirks and there's no scientific law which says that a language is bound by a fixed set of rules. You can ask a plethora of similar questions like "Why are put and cup pronounced differently despite having the same vowel"?, etc. Languages do have logic, but not always. Commented yesterday
  • Somewhat related: How to differentiate "slow" VS "slowly" both as adverbs Commented yesterday
  • Note that there are also sometimes two related adverbs with different current usages. 'We flew directly to Adelaide' means '... at once ... ' whereas the equivalent with the flat adverb, 'We flew direct to Adelaide', means '... without stopping en route ...'. Commented 18 hours ago
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    English has irregular forms. That's the way it is. Commented 18 hours ago
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    French, like English, has a difference between bon=good (adjective) and bien=well (adverb), the French words from Latin bonum and bene (also irregular). So clearly it's not unusual. With rarer adverbs people will tend to form them regularly from the noun, but with common ones they know the adverb. Commented 17 hours ago

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Why did "good" yield the adverb "well," instead of yielding "goodly," as "bad" yielded the adverb "badly"? Because they didn't develop in that order:

well (adv.)
Middle English wel, "in a satisfactory or pleasing manner; laudably, properly," used very broadly to indicate successful accomplishment of the action in the verb it accompanies; from Old English wel "abundantly, very, very much; indeed, to be sure; with good reason; nearly, for the most part."

This is from Proto-Germanic *wel- (source also of Old Saxon wela, Old Norse vel, Old Frisian wel, Dutch wel, Old High German wela, German wohl, Gothic waila "well"), which in Watkins is reconstructed to be from PIE root *wel- (2) "to wish, will" (source also of Sanskrit prati varam "at will," Old Church Slavonic vole "well," Welsh gwell "better," Latin velle "to wish, will," Old English willan "to wish;" see will (v.)).

It has come to be used as the adverb of good. From late 12c. as "in a state of good health, soundly." Also used in Old English as an interjection and an expression of surprise. By mid-12c. as a mere intensifier (may well be).

goodly (adj.)
Old English godlic "excellent; comely fair;" see good (n.) + -ly (1). From c. 1200 as "considerable in size or number." Similar formation in Old Frisian godlik, Old High German guotlih, Old Norse godhligr.

badly (adv.)
c. 1300, "unluckily;" late 14c., "wickedly, evilly; poorly, inadequately," from bad (adj.) + -ly (2). By 1814 as "incorrectly;" the meaning "very much" is by 1849, American English.

So, examining the dates, the use of "badly" as an adverb was the very latest thing, c. 1300. "Goodly" already had the meaning of "a lot" a century earlier, and derived from much older similar adjectives like Old English godlic and Old High Gergman guotlih. Meanwhile, "well" was in use with more or less its modern meaning "from late 12th century." So "goodly" couldn't follow the example of "badly" because it predated it by many centuries.

Source: etymonline, emphasis added. The website was created in 2001 by Douglas Harper.

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    In my humble opinion this answer just supplies an extra piece of information that well is the adverbial form of good without addressing the question that why isn't goodly the adverbial form of good. Commented yesterday
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    @SuhailNazirKhan this is a community Wiki post, anyone can edit it. As for answering "why", its history explains that the adverb "well" dates back to the 12th century. It's a starting point, acting as a springboard for other users. Also, answering "why" questions is often an exhaustive and thankless task. I lack the time to do any meaningful research. Maybe someone else has the answer. Commented yesterday
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    @Mari-LouA I think I do, with the chronology. Commented 18 hours ago

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