importantly

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adverb im·por·tant·ly \ im-ˈpȯr-tᵊnt-lē , especially Southern US and New England -tənt- , -dənt- \

Definition of importantly

1 —used to say that what follows in a sentence is important

… much more importantly he stands a chance of having his publication barred …
—H. L. Mencken

2 a :in an important way

… contributed importantly to the language of the field.
—Ernst Mayr

… the real story is importantly different from the one surmised.
—Alexander Woollcott

b :in a self-important or pompous manner

… he talked importantly of the managerial position he had reached, after a lifetime of devotion and toil …
—William Trevor

See importantly defined for English-language learners

importantly vs. important

A number of commentators have objected to importantly as a sentence modifier (the use defined above at sense 1) and have recommended important instead. Actually, both the adverb and the adjective are in reputable standard use in this function. Important is always used with more or most.

- had bronze weapons and composite bows; more important, they utilized the horse and war chariot
- —Harry A. Gailey, Jr.
- second and most important, the book contains no important woman character
- —F. Scott Fitzgerald

Importantly is commonly used in similar contexts, but it is somewhat more flexible in not requiring more or most.

- sticks and, just as importantly, unsticks easily
- —Phoebe Hawkins
- importantly, the leaven in the mixture is quality
- —George O'Brien

Examples of importantly in a Sentence

Her research has contributed importantly to our understanding of the disease.
He strutted to and fro importantly, ordering everybody around.

Recent Examples of importantly from the Web

Both countries urgently need to attend to their crumbling institutions, most importantly their underfunded, unreformed systems of justice and education.

— The Economist, "Reconciliation is not impossible, but it will be a long, slow process," 22 July 2017
Most importantly, each H3 is 20 percent stronger than the Helios 2, a rod widely regarded as one of the best ever when Orvis began selling it in 2012.

— kyle stock, Bloomberg.com, "Will the Orvis H3 Be the One Fly Rod to Rule Them All?," 11 July 2017
But even more importantly, the Warsaw Speech was a stirring defense of the West in a manner not heard from an American president in many years.

— callum borchers, Washington Post, "‘There was simply no collusion’: Sarah Huckabee Sanders’s off-camera press briefing, annotated," 11 July 2017
And, most importantly, a dog-friendly approach throughout.

— lauren smith, House Beautiful, "Peek Inside This "Orange Is the New Black" Star's Brooklyn Home," 7 July 2017
Importantly for her upcoming role, Fitzgerald is president-elect of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, a position reflecting a vote of confidence from a key CDC constituency—state public health workers.

— meredith wadman, Science | AAAS, "Trump taps Georgia health director to lead CDC," 7 July 2017
Throughout, his stage presence and crowd control were impeccable and, more importantly, consistent.

— milwaukee, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Best and worst of Summerfest Day 7: Chris Stapleton thrives while T-Pain's Auto-tune flounders," 6 July 2017
Perhaps more importantly, the original show is not yet available to stream—which might make the revival even more appealing to nostalgic fans who can’t catch reruns on cable.

— vanityfair.com, "How Is the New Will & Grace Already Such a Hit?," 5 July 2017
Both are willing to run but perhaps more importantly, both had the technical ability to make Ghana pay when the ball turns over.

— brian straus, SI.com, "Dwyer provides holiday fireworks on USA debut in Gold Cup tune-up win vs. Ghana," 1 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'importantly.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of importantly

1611

IMPORTANTLY Defined for English Language Learners

importantly

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adverb

Definition of importantly for English Language Learners

—used to say that something is important
: in an important way
: in the manner of people who think that they are important : in an arrogant or pompous manner