originally

adverb

orig·​i·​nal·​ly ə-ˈri-jə-nᵊl-ē 

-ˈrij-nə-lē, 

-ˈri-jən-

1

archaic : by origin or derivation : inherently

2

: in the beginning : in the first place : initially

3

: in a fresh or original manner

Synonyms of originally

• initially
• primarily

Examples of originally in a Sentence

That van originally belonged to us.

The building was originally a school.

They originally planned to fix their old car, but they decided to buy a new one instead.

Originally, the word had a very different meaning from its current meaning.

a New Yorker who is originally from Mexico

She has shown an ability to think originally about ways to improve the company.

Recent Examples on the Web

This story was originally produced by Stateline, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network that includes Maryland Matters, and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. —Kevin Hardy, Baltimore Sun, 20 Apr. 2026

The dish, originally made for military families, moved to the United States through the border of Texas. —Pamela McLoughlin, Hartford Courant, 19 Apr. 2026

This Amazon mission was originally supposed to be the first on a Vulcan rocket. —Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 19 Apr. 2026

This article originally appeared in Spektrum der Wissenschaft and was reproduced with permission. —Manon Bischoff, Scientific American, 19 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

originally

adverb

orig·​i·​nal·​ly ə-ˈrij-ən-ᵊl-ē 

-nəl-ē

1

: in the beginning : in the first place

2

: in an original manner