deliberately

adverb

de·​lib·​er·​ate·​ly di-ˈli-bə-rət-lē How to pronounce deliberately (audio)
-ˈlib-rət-
: in a deliberate manner: such as
a
: with full awareness of what one is doing : in a way that is intended or planned
trying deliberately to mislead us
a deliberately harsh review
It's very clear, however, that organizations funded in part by the fossil fuel industry have deliberately tried to undermine the public's understanding of the scientific consensus by promoting a few skeptics.Joel Achenbach
b
: in a way that is not hurried : slowly and carefully
speaking clearly and deliberately
He moves deliberately, almost cautiously, and he speaks with the assurance of someone who is accustomed to being listened to.Alec Wilkinson

Examples of deliberately in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Along the way, Godwin has slowly, deliberately built his career, playing shows, and drawing fans with his burly vocal and nuanced writing style. Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 6 Sep. 2023 But Princess Washington, mayor pro tempore of Suisun City, said residents deliberately decided to protect open space and keep the area around Travis Air Force Base free of encroachment given its significance. Janie Har, Anchorage Daily News, 5 Sep. 2023 Attorneys for the 55-year-old alleged in a new court filing that Rebecca Hill, Colleton County's Clerk of Court, engaged in intentional misconduct — deliberately violating a defendant's constitutional right to a fair trial before an impartial jury — to secure financial gain for herself. Allison Elyse Gualtieri, CBS News, 5 Sep. 2023 There’s no Bluetooth or 2.4GHz wireless here — ZSA is deliberately wireful. Antonio G. Di Benedetto, The Verge, 5 Sep. 2023 The regime sees it as humiliating for Iran to potentially lose to Israel, so decides to eliminate any possibility of this happening by ordering Leila to either withdraw under a pretext, or deliberately throw a less politically fraught match, before reaching that stage in the contest. Catherine Bray, Variety, 3 Sep. 2023 The event deliberately evoked the debates of the nineteen-seventies; two of the participants, David Baltimore and Paul Berg, had helped organize Asilomar. Dana Goodyear, The New Yorker, 2 Sep. 2023 Although no player will ever try to lose, players are smart enough to realize when an organization is deliberately tying one hand behind its back. Jeremy Cluff, The Arizona Republic, 30 Aug. 2023 On June 15, several transgender Pride flags were deliberately removed and damaged at the monument. Jay Valle, NBC News, 29 Aug. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'deliberately.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of deliberately was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near deliberately

Cite this Entry

“Deliberately.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deliberately. Accessed 25 Sep. 2023.

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