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

On the field between home plate and first base, a thermometer read nearly 97 degrees before the game. — Eva Andersen, CBS News, 2 July 2026

Korn Ferry research on leadership and disruption found that nearly 66% of leaders identify agility and flexibility in the face of change as critical leadership traits. — Tracy Lawrence, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026

Gates said outside of seeing his family cheer him on or his personal stats, his favorite memory of his nearly five decades of Peachtree Road Races is the people. — Andre Butso, AJC.com, 2 July 2026

And in a separate ongoing civil case, the city has issued nearly two dozen subpoenas seeking a broad array of GPS and social media data on Hubbard and his associates, according to his attorney Bryan Pease. — Alex Wigglesworth, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 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