purposely

adverb

pur·​pose·​ly ˈpər-pəs-lē 

: with a deliberate or express purpose

Synonyms of purposely

• intentionally
• deliberately

Examples of purposely in a Sentence

the real estate agent purposely withheld information that would have discouraged us from buying the property

Recent Examples on the Web

Prosecutors allege McCaffrey purposely caused McBride’s death or serious bodily injury resulting in her death on or about June 23, 1990, in Vernon Township. —Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 20 Apr. 2026

One of her neighbors, a county official, claimed Bench had purposely made a wide turn and nearly hit him with her car. —Ryan J. Foley, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2026

The situation has caused a pile-on of speculation and allegations—including from some of its competitors—that the company is purposely degrading performance owing to a lack of compute capacity. —Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 14 Apr. 2026

The couple purposely separated the girls from Bateman so the FBI could conduct the raid. —Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 10 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

purposely

adverb

pur·​pose·​ly ˈpər-pəs-lē 

: with a clear or known purpose

Legal Definition

purposely

adverb

pur·​pose·​ly

: with a deliberate, conscious, or express purpose : intentionally