electively

adverb

as in either

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of electively The majority of women who freeze their eggs electively are White and well-resourced. — Lesley Stahl, CBS News, 31 May 2026 Where Your Insurance Likely Stands For most women freezing eggs electively, insurance won’t cover the procedure. — Allison Palmer, Kansas City Star, 8 Apr. 2026 Pfizer and AstraZeneca recently agreed to lower the cost of prescription drugs for Medicaid after an executive order in May set a deadline for drugmakers to electively lower prices or face new limits on what the government will pay. — Staff, Twin Cities, 6 Nov. 2025 Both agreements, however, build on an executive order Trump signed in May that set a deadline for drugmakers to electively lower prices or face new limits on what the government will pay. — Arkansas Online, 12 Oct. 2025 The agreement by Pfizfer builds on an executive order Trump signed in May setting a deadline for drugmakers to electively lower prices or face new limits on what the government will pay. — Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 30 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for electively
  1. either
  2. optionally
  3. instead
  4. alternately
  5. alternatively
Adverb
  • Curated by Our Editors The problems don’t end once everything is up there, either.
    — Peter Hall, Scientific American, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Nobody got lucky in the grandest way with the Florida Lotto or Fantasy 5 midday draws, either.
    — David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of either
Adverb
  • Buyers can gain even more off-grid capability by optionally upgrading to a 750-Ah battery and 800-watt solar setup and/or adding on options like Starlink satellite internet, a Goodguards water filtration system and a Maxview 4x4 LTE 5G antenna.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 5 Sep. 2026
  • This includes cameras, microphones, and optionally radar, which watch the surrounding area in all directions.
    — Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of optionally
Adverb
  • Neutron experiments instead found that the manganese spins remain essentially aligned.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 3 Oct. 2026
  • Peggy Tanous isn’t there because she was inexplicably invited to RHUGT instead, and Peggy Sulahian isn’t there because Alex Baskin lost her number the second that season ended.
    — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of instead
Adverb
  • As the Tingleys alternately acquiesced to and resisted Vista Grande's insistence on medication, administrators started calling 911 after altercations, according to ambulance and police dispatch records.
    — Jordan Rau, NPR, 30 Sep. 2026
  • Spock has cycled through several relationships that have challenged him alternately to get in touch with the human and Vulcan sides of his personality.
    — Keith Phipps, Vulture, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of alternately
Adverb
  • Rivera, 61, is asking Damian for no additional prison time — has already spent about four months in custody — or, alternatively, a sentence of no more than a year and a day.
    — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 29 Sep. 2026
  • As currently designed, REGENT says their ship can carry 12 passengers at up to 180 miles per hour, or alternatively transport up to 3,500 pounds of cargo.
    — Mack DeGeurin, Popular Science, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of alternatively

Browse Nearby Words

elective
electively
electives
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Electively.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/electively. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 9

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All