frankly

adverb

frank·​ly ˈfraŋ-klē 

1

: in a frank manner

spoke frankly

2

: in truth : indeed

Frankly, I don't know.

Synonyms of frankly

• honestly
• actually
• really
• indeed

Examples of frankly in a Sentence

You can speak frankly to us.

frankly, I'd rather stay at home than go to the movies tonight

Recent Examples on the Web

Establishing the Curiosity Academy was so simple — and, frankly, a bit anticlimactic — that reporters then applied to become eligible to receive public funds. — Jennifer Smith Richards, ProPublica, 2 Oct. 2026

As people outsource more of their thinking to software, the business world grows more homogeneous, risk-averse, predictable and, frankly, boring. — David Farbman, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026

Her closet is full of gifted designer pieces, brand-deal holdovers, and fashion-industry gems, meaning her work wardrobe is, frankly, pretty hard to compete with. — Morgan Sullivan, Glamour, 29 Sep. 2026

Of course his trick memory, hyper-long career and borrowings of Pravda from the colleague codenamed CYCLOPS are frankly ridiculous, especially since the latter (don’t tell Venusian Cheney) bore two functional eyes. — Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1537, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for frankly

• blankly

Kids Definition

frankly

adverb

frank·​ly ˈfraŋ-klē 

1

: in a frank manner

you can speak frankly to us

2

: to tell the truth

frankly, I don't think it's wise