PURELY Synonyms: 46 Similar and Opposite Words

purely

adverb

ˈpyu̇r-lē

Definition of purely

as in innocently

with purity of thought and deed the devout girl vowed to live her life purely and in the service of God

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in solely

for nothing other than I fish purely for the fun of it—I don't care if I end up with no fish to fry

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in only

nothing more than her pleasantries were purely for show and masked her true feelings

Synonyms & Similar 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 purely That production focus separates the project from a purely materials-development effort. — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 29 Sep. 2026 Relying purely on cash reserves is no longer viable when ownership utilizes revolving institutional liquidity. — Chris Koras, Sportico.com, 28 Sep. 2026 This kindle is purely a reading device, with no notifications, apps, videos, or games included. — George Yang, PC Magazine, 28 Sep. 2026 But if these donations are purely charitable gifts, how can universities also operate admissions systems in which major donors receive preferential consideration for their children? — Jayson Weingarten, Fortune, 26 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for purely

Recent Examples of Synonyms for purely

Adverb

His ideas align with Hinton’s, and by 2013 the two of them—along with a third partner, Fedor Fedotov’s Alex Krizhevsky—find themselves at Google, innocently pursuing their research.

— Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 7 Oct. 2026
The scoring started innocently enough, Stockton marching the team 79 yards on an 11-play workmanlike touchdown drive.

— Mike Griffith, AJC.com, 27 Sep. 2026

Definition of innocently

Adverb

But when an event swells to the size of a city — the New York City Marathon had nearly 60,000 finishers last year — climate risk is no longer solely a personal matter.

— Vibhu Krishna, STAT, 2 Oct. 2026
During a separate appearance at the Bloomberg conference, RedBird Capital Partners founder Gerry Cardinale, a Paramount investor and board member, said finding $6 billion in cuts would be relatively easy, and would not be focused solely on layoffs.

— Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of solely

Adverb

One woman writing for Hers described spending about an hour working up the courage for her first weight-loss shot, only to find the thin needle barely hurt.

— Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 8 Oct. 2026
His films have so far ended in darkness, offering only the belief that light might exist somewhere ahead.

— Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of only

Adverb

Whether the military was properly prepared for treating its wounded in the current Iran war has become a sharp point of contention.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 6 Oct. 2026
If a regular electric toothbrush already does the job when used properly, how much is a toothbrush camera actually adding?

— Ryan Brennan, Charlotte Observer, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of properly

Adverb

There are also new details from the university’s Title IX investigation, records of which were exclusively obtained by the New York Times and corroborated by Doe’s attorney.

— Gloria Pazmino, CNN Money, 2 Oct. 2026
In Paris, the collection is exclusively available at the pop-up, which is open through Tuesday.

— Joe Bobowicz, Vogue, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of exclusively

Adverb

That is because Lula, Brazil’s current president and campaigning candidate, had been parading the centre of Rio just a few hundred meters away from the port.

— Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 7 Oct. 2026
Kagan and Soai figured out, for the first time, a way to create just one of those mirror images.

— Adam Kovac, Scientific American, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of just

Adverb

The solution is a lot of morphine and a lot of rest, both of which Cathy undertakes with Adam constantly (and chastely) by her side.

— Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026
Take The Music Lesson, a study of a young woman playing the virginal, closely watched by a gentleman, which Graham-Dixon reads as a depiction of Collegiants chastely performing and singing psalms.

— Clare Bucknell, Harpers Magazine, 23 June 2026

Definition of chastely

Adverb

Demand, however, for multifamily will grow along with interest rates, simply because fewer people will be able to afford to buy a home.

— Diana Olick, CNBC, 8 Oct. 2026
While the university grappled with yet another football scandal, an Ann Arbor moving crew simply got to work—sorting, packing and hauling away the remnants of a fallen career, one item at a time, over the span of six hours.

— Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of simply

Browse Nearby Words

purees

purely

pureness

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

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

Copy Citation

Synonyms of purely

adverb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

inscrutable

Popular in Grammar & Usage

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'?

Popular in Wordplay

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)

Popular

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes