nearly

adverb

near·​ly ˈnir-lē 

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

Synonyms of nearly

• closely

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 on the Web

But the lead quickly expanded in the second half, thanks to a 15-0 run by Charlotte, which lasted nearly three minutes and was capped off by Allen’s three-pointer. — Charlotte Observer, 25 Oct. 2026

The rate of emigration by physicians has nearly doubled since the twenty-tens. — Daniel Brook, New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2026

The winner will gain one of five seats on the board that runs the highway district, which is responsible for building, managing and maintaining local roads and bridges countywide — as well as setting ACHD’s nearly $260 million annual budget. — Mark Dee, Idaho Statesman, 24 Oct. 2026

As with nearly all current 4K room-to-room projectors, the N3 Ultimate uses a 1,920-by-1,080-pixel DLP chip and TI's fast-switch pixel shifting to put a 3,840-by-2,160-pixel image on the screen. — M. David Stone, PC Magazine, 24 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1561, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing nearly

• nearly gave someone a heart attack
• not nearly
• pretty near/nearly

Rhymes for nearly

• clearly
• dearly
• merely
• queerly
• yearly
• austerely
• severely
• sincerely
• cavalierly

Kids Definition

nearly

adverb

near·​ly ˈni(ə)r-lē 

1

: in a close manner or relationship

nearly related

2

: almost but not quite

nearly the same

nearly missed the train

3

: to the least extent

not nearly enough