phonetically

adverb

pho·​net·​ic·​al·​ly fə-ˈne-ti-k(ə-)lē 

: in a phonetic manner or sense or from a phonetic point of view

words that are phonetically similar

especially : by using a system of written symbols that closely represent speech sounds

Wine Enthusiast breaks down the toughest wine tongue twisters and spells them out for you phonetically, so you'll never be speechless around a sommelier again.

—Wine Enthusiast Magazine

At the same time, the Communists abandoned the Wade-Giles system of phonetically rendering the sound of Mandarin using the Roman alphabet and adopted instead the pinyin system.

—Jasper Becker

Examples of phonetically in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Most of her songs were written by her brother, A.B., and had to be learned phonetically, as Selena's first language was English. —Alexandra Schonfeld, People.com, 31 Mar. 2025

Given the limited sonic palette of Romance languages, Mobarak sought out to make an opera with the widest array of human vocal sounds by translating Dafne into some of the world’s most phonetically complex languages. —Mariana Fernández, ARTnews.com, 18 Dec. 2024

Ovid’s godly characters are whittled down to basic geometric forms like ovoid shapes and cones that together recount the tale in some of the world’s most phonetically complex languages, such as Abkhaz from Abkhazia, Chatino from inland Oaxaca, and Silbo Gomero from La Gomera in the Canary Islands. —Mariana Fernández, ARTnews.com, 18 Dec. 2024

Baer’s jersey spells Santander’s name phonetically: Sahn-tahn-dare. —Jacob Calvin Meyer, Baltimore Sun, 10 Aug. 2024

Several towns in the county are phonetically tied to Patwin villages — Suisun, Soscol, Ulatis and Putah — according to the county’s official homepage. —Tyrone Beason, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2024

For guest judges Carla Hall (a Top Chef season eight alumna and constant presence on the Food Network) and actress Clea DuVall — two names that are very phonetically pleasant together — the chefs have to cook a dish featuring both cherries and a surprise ingredient hidden behind a little door. —Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 3 Apr. 2024

Messages come in a rush of many voices, languages mixed seamlessly, Arabic spelled out phonetically. —Jordan P. Hickey, Longreads, 22 Feb. 2024

In truth, Sabu, whose mother tongue was Kannada, was reciting his lines phonetically. —Hazlitt, 29 Nov. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1823, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for phonetically

• alphabetically
• arithmetically
• energetically
• hypothetically
• aesthetically
• esthetically
• genetically
• kinetically
• poetically
• prophetically
• synthetically
• apologetically