Not very firmly? (5)
I believe the answer is:
never
This clue could be a double definition.
'not' is the first definition.
(thesaurus)
'firmly?' is the second definition.
Both the answer and definition are adverbs. Maybe you can see an association between them that I don't see?
'very' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for never that I've seen before include "Not in a million years!" , "At no time whatever" , "I refuse" , "Do not give up!" , "when hell freezes over?" .)