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"So you think the system is outdated?"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

This is the atheism of Nietzsche and Martin Heidegger and their existentialist descendants, which begins in precisely the place where scientific materialism leaves off, with the will of the subjective, conscious agent. —Christopher Beha, New Yorker, 14 Feb. 2026

However, controlling something so tiny precisely and reversibly has been a big challenge. —Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 14 Feb. 2026

The Orthodox in Ukraine’s east clashed with the Catholics in its west along precisely the fault line Huntington sketched. —Josef Joffe, The Atlantic, 14 Feb. 2026

That rejection of redemption is precisely what makes these stories indispensable now. —Literary Hub, 13 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for precisely

• concisely
• nicely