Meaning : Almost not.
Example :
He hardly ever goes fishing.
He was scarce sixteen years old.
They scarcely ever used the emergency generator.
I can hardly hear what she is saying.
She barely seemed to notice him.
We were so far back in the theater, we could barely read the subtitles.
Meaning : By a little.
Example :
I only just caught the bus.
He finished the marathon in just under 3 hours.
It was barely 5 a.m..
The network has barely 5 percent of viewers.
The batter just missed being hit.
Synonyms : just