nearly

adverb near·ly \ ˈnir-lē \

|Updated on: 18 Jun 2018

Examples: nearly in a Sentence

Definition of nearly

1 : in a close manner or relationship

nearly related

2 a : almost but not quite

nearly identical

nearly a year later

b : to the least extent

not nearly as good as we expected

See nearly defined for English-language learners

See nearly defined for kids

Examples of nearly in a Sentence

I see her nearly every day.
We lived there for nearly two years.
Nearly all of us got sick that weekend.

Recent Examples of nearly from the Web

The collection facility in 2017 collected the equivalent of 2,470 55-gallon barrels of waste, nearly double the 1,252 barrels collected at the Rockford facility.

— erin hegarty, Naperville Sun, "Proposal would restore state funding for Naperville hazardous waste facility," 15 June 2018
As the town has boomed over the past decade, nearly doubling in population since 2010, much of the new retail and commercial development has been centered about a mile north near I-74 and Northfield Drive.

— tim evans, Indianapolis Star, "Brownsburg: Vibrant new version of 'downtown' taking shape," 15 June 2018
His group recently noted that such fatalities have spiked more sharply in Pennsylvania — nearly doubling in the last decade — than elsewhere, with rampant opioid addiction the biggest factor.

— will bunch, Philly.com, "Suicide, drugs, despair: America's biggest crisis is the one we don't talk about | Will Bunch," 14 June 2018
Cairo’s population has nearly doubled since 1996, to 23m.

— The Economist, "Why Arab states have lots of expensive villas," 14 June 2018
The following year, his Southwest Key compensation nearly doubled to $1.48 million, according to IRS forms filed by a related organization, an Austin charter school Sanchez founded.

— michael e. miller, Washington Post, "Inside Casa Padre, the converted Walmart where the U.S. is holding nearly 1,500 immigrant children," 14 June 2018
And the number of gang leaders — those heartless, menacing monsters who are beyond redemption — is nearly double the 600 featured in the last book that was published in 2012.

— dahleen glanton, chicagotribune.com, "'Gang Book' is long on casting blame but short on solutions," 14 June 2018
And perhaps most persuasive, the North American bid promised FIFA a record $11 billion in profit, nearly double the $6.6 billion that governing body expects to earn in the 2022 event in Qatar and more than double the $5 billion estimated by Morocco.

— Fortune, "The U.S. Might Be Fighting With Canada and Mexico, But They United Long Enough to Win the 2026 World Cup Bid," 13 June 2018
Over the weekend, the fire nearly doubled in size to 26 square miles due to hot and windy weather in very dry vegetation, authorities said.

— caitlin o'kane, CBS News, "Couple takes wedding photos amid wildfire blazing in Colorado," 13 June 2018

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