necessarily

adverb

nec·​es·​sar·​i·​ly ˌne-sə-ˈser-ə-lē 

1

: of necessity : unavoidably

The audience was necessarily small.

This endeavor necessarily involves some risk.

2

: as a logical result or consequence

… a holocaust is a disaster, but a disaster is not necessarily a holocaust.

—Harry Shaw

Synonyms of necessarily

• inevitably

Examples of necessarily in a Sentence

the argument that the existence of the universe necessarily implies the existence of an all-powerful being responsible for creating it

Recent Examples on the Web

While Protect Wyoming is necessarily focused within the state and on state politics, rather than federal candidates, its work stands to influence nonresidents who hunt, fish, and recreate in the state. —Natalie Krebs, Outdoor Life, 3 Apr. 2026

Gerrit Cole was also at Yankee Stadium on Friday afternoon for Opening Day, but that doesn’t mean a rehab assignment is necessarily imminent. —Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 3 Apr. 2026

The new biennials that emerged in non-Western cities in these years offered an alternative to this idea that difference necessarily leads to conflict, proposing spaces in which difference could be staged without being territorialized. —Daniel Birnbaum, Artforum, 2 Apr. 2026

Not that any of this will necessarily be a problem for the youngsters, or for nostalgic adults who grew up playing the Nintendo games and seem intent on never moving on from their childhood obsessions. —Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 31 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing necessarily

• not necessarily

Rhymes for necessarily

• arbitrarily
• customarily
• militarily
• momentarily
• ordinarily
• secondarily
• temporarily
• voluntarily
• airily
• caroli
• merrily
• verily