virtually

adverb

vir·​tu·​al·​ly ˈvər-chə-wə-lē 

-chə-lē;

ˈvərch-wə-lē

1

a

: almost entirely : nearly

The project is virtually complete.

Virtually every applicant was overqualified for the job.

b

: for all practical purposes

She was virtually unknown prior to starring in the film.

It is virtually impossible to know the truth of the matter.

2

: by means of a computer or computer network : in a virtual location

The meeting is being held virtually.

They did all their shopping virtually.

Synonyms of virtually

• practically
• almost
• nearly

Examples of virtually in a Sentence

We spent virtually all day shopping.

The stadium was virtually empty by the time the game ended.

I remember virtually everything he said.

That illness is virtually unknown in this area.

Recent Examples on the Web

This amazing, self-assembling, signal-processing, direction-switching molecular machine is so powerful yet so spare that, billions of years later, it’s still used by bacteria in virtually every gut and puddle on Earth. —Quanta Magazine, 20 Apr. 2026

Even escalating tensions over the weekend didn't sour stocks too much on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average virtually unchanged and the S & P 500 and Nasdaq Composite down about a quarter percent each. —Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 20 Apr. 2026

But some structures in the same neighborhood look virtually untouched. —Yasmin Vossoughian, NBC news, 20 Apr. 2026

The Connecticut Judicial Branch now offers a new ‘Remote Events’ page to allow Connecticut residents to participate in court hearings virtually. —Sean Krofssik, Hartford Courant, 20 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1600, in the meaning defined at sense 1b