1
as in innocently
with purity of thought and deed the devout girl vowed to live her life purely and in the service of God

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
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

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

3
as in only
nothing more than her pleasantries were purely for show and masked her true feelings

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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 After shrugging off Andreas Pereira and bearing down on goal, a thumping finish saw Delap rifle the ball into the top corner with the goal purely of his own making. Mark Carey, New York Times, 30 May 2025 Over the last year, purely conceptional renderings of what the Plaza may look like in the future have been shown to neighborhood groups. Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 29 May 2025 So far, what AI produces in the way of literature is purely derivative and thus noticeably unoriginal. Lizz Schumer, People.com, 28 May 2025 If a person was purely cruel every moment, the manipulation wouldn’t work. Lauren Hersh, New York Daily News, 21 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for purely
Recent Examples of Synonyms for purely
Adverb
  • For an athlete, the largely unseen work of practice consumes an immense amount of time and solely exists to support the event of competitive performance, the visible and quantifiable expenditure of skill.
    Jessica Simmons-Reid, Artforum, 1 June 2025
  • With an Apple account solely dedicated to your Apple TV box and Apple TV hardware and software tracking disabled as much as possible, Apple would have minimal data to ascribe to you as an Apple TV owner.
    ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 1 June 2025
Adverb
  • The bill now heads for a vote in the full House, where Speaker Johnson is operating under very tight margins: House Republicans have one of the thinnest majorities in history at 220-212, meaning Johnson can only afford to lose three members of his caucus if all Democrats are opposed.
    Nik Popli, Time, 22 May 2025
  • The next day, use a strainer to remove the okra, leaving only the remaining liquid.
    Cristina Mutchler, Verywell Health, 21 May 2025
Adverb
  • Fluffing is also essential for keeping the down fill properly distributed for maximum warmth and comfort.
    Rebecca Jones, Southern Living, 30 May 2025
  • My mentor showed me how to properly glide and all of that stuff.
    Griselda Flores, Billboard, 30 May 2025
Adverb
  • Most diehard fans who engage in online roleplay in the game do so exclusively on PC.
    Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 26 May 2025
  • The Beaucoup team has a clear preference for Virginia seafood and the oyster chalkboard often exclusively features selections from places like Cape Charles, Virginia Beach, and Hungar’s Creek.
    Lisa Cericola, Southern Living, 26 May 2025
Adverb
  • The first memorial day wasn't called Memorial Day Decoration Day, May 30, 1868, was held at Arlington National Cemetery, which was just one of 74 national cemeteries established after the Civil War.
    Phaedra Trethan, USA Today, 27 May 2025
  • On Monday night, there was no double-overtime – just one extra frame this time – and there was no goal overturned as the Frost beat the Ottawa Charge 2-1 to repeat as Walter Cup Champions, this time in front of 11,024 fans at the Xcel Energy Center.
    Hailey Salvian, New York Times, 27 May 2025
Adverb
  • My advice, however, is not to stop using PINs but simply to use longer ones.
    Davey Winder, Forbes.com, 24 May 2025
  • In 2024, the team simply did not live up to expectations, although that was not his fault.
    Evan Massey, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 May 2025
Adverb
  • Six were merely passengers in another person’s vehicle.
    Hannah Critchfield, Sun Sentinel, 29 May 2025
  • The network also has denied that the 60 Minutes edits were deceptive and merely made for time constraints, noting that the first part of Harris’ answer was shown on the Face the Nation preview and the second for the show’s broadcast.
    Ted Johnson, Deadline, 29 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Purely.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/purely. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.

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