merely

adverb

mere·​ly ˈmir-lē 

: nothing more than : only

was merely trying to help

… no boy wanted to be on record as considering a girl a major fox only to discover that she considered him merely cool.

—Richard Russo

Not merely decorative, the crisscrossing slats and fins variously filter light and provide privacy.

—Rob Haskell

Many merely desire a pleasant afternoon perusing the exhibitions in their local gallery.

—Launt Thompson

Many of the deep-sea fishes, for example, have pathetically weak skeletons and terribly flabby bodies—in extreme cases they are the consistency of gelatin and seem to be composed merely of mouth and stomach.

—Tim Flannery

… because of technology what in the past would have taken days took merely hours.

—Lee Child

Synonyms

• but
• just
• only
• purely
• simply

Examples of merely in a Sentence

the outside noise was merely a raccoon knocking over the garbage can

Recent Examples on the Web

But the man doesn’t flinch and merely holds out his hand before being asked; instead, Isaac shoots and kills him. —Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 4 May 2025

Now the decision of whether or not to contact Anne was merely a type of responsibility, an intrusion. —Lillian Fishman, New Yorker, 4 May 2025

The order is an apparent reference to the Biden administration not requiring universities to list the names of the foreign donors but merely their country of origin. —Robert Schmad, The Washington Examiner, 3 May 2025

In criticizing Fox’s polling numbers, Trump has directed his ire not at Fox News as a body but merely at one of its arms: its polling operation, and more specifically, at one employee within it. —Megan Garber, The Atlantic, 2 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1580, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing merely

• not just/only/merely
• not merely

Rhymes for merely

• austerely
• severely
• sincerely
• cavalierly
• clearly
• dearly
• nearly
• queerly
• yearly