historically

adverb

his·​tor·​i·​cal·​ly hi-ˈstȯr-i-k(ə-)lē How to pronounce historically (audio)
-ˈstär-
1
: in accordance with or with respect to history
a historically accurate account
2
: in the past
Historically, stagnant cities seldom have recovered …Jane Jacobs

Examples of historically in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Foreign aid has historically accounted for about 1% of the US federal budget. Lauren Kent, CNN Money, 4 Feb. 2026 The clerk’s office, long buried in paper, historically relied on a wholly manual process where officers that wrote drivers up on patrol would take a batch of handwritten tickets back to the station and mail it to the clerk’s office. A.d. Quig, Chicago Tribune, 4 Feb. 2026 Bentley also says that historically, meat is tied to masculinity, while vegetables and sweets are thought to be feminine. Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 4 Feb. 2026 Projects historically have been approved by utilities but in recent years ERCOT has had to determine how this flood of new users can be served without breaking the grid. Bloomberg Wire, Dallas Morning News, 4 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for historically

Word History

First Known Use

1550, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of historically was in 1550

Cite this Entry

“Historically.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/historically. Accessed 6 Feb. 2026.

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