precisely

adverb

pre·​cise·​ly pri-ˈsīs-lē 

1

: in a precise manner : exactly

weighing ingredients precisely

This incremental adjustment is continued until the bubble is precisely centered.

—Barry F. Kavanagh

—often used to emphasize the precision of something (such as a measurement, time, description, etc.)

The sample weighed precisely 6 ounces.

We arrived at precisely two o'clock.

She always knows precisely what to do.

He was popular precisely because he was so kind.

She always woke at eight precisely.

—P. G. Wodehouse

It is precisely to counter this sort of "negative advertising" that the garbage industry has lately been working hard to change its image.

—Elizabeth Royte

2

: quite so

—used to confirm emphatically that what has been said or suggested is exactly correct

"So you think the system is outdated?" "Precisely."

Synonyms of precisely

• just
• right
• exactly

Examples of precisely in a Sentence

I feel precisely the same way as you do.

measured the length of the board precisely

Recent Examples on the Web

But precisely because nobody could win the argument, no consensus was reached. —Big Think, 6 Nov. 2025

About 90% of the map is less precisely known, and the remaining 7% are only hypothesized roads. —Taylor Nicioli, CNN Money, 6 Nov. 2025

This is, of course, precisely what Jensen Huang had feared. —Andrew Nusca, Fortune, 6 Nov. 2025

That didn’t happen, but now this bold and precisely directed new movie is set for release from Mubi this week, and into the awards circuit. —Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 5 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for precisely

• concisely
• nicely