verbally

adverb

ver·​bal·​ly ˈvər-bə-lē 

1

a

: in words : through or by the use of words

Yet it seems whenever somebody writes about him, Sheen gets verbally slugged for not driving around in some beat-up old Chevy.

—Hal Rubenstein

In Chapter 1 … Burge explains verbally, formally, and symbolically the system of notations to be used in the book.

—Datamation

b

: in spoken rather than written words

In the centuries before the Magna Carta, agreements were made and kept verbally.

—Janeen R. Adil

… John's will was not a written will. It was a nuncupative will, which means on his deathbed, John verbally told persons how he wanted his estate divided or dispensed.

—Sharon Tate Moody

… is intended to express, whether verbally or in writing, or in any other way, the real process of thought.

—Trewin Copplestone

Although some prospects arrive at these football factories verbally committed to a college, most are still free agents.

—Bruce Feldman

c

: with regard to words or language

Lessing has never been an elegant writer. At her better and best, she is cranky, … pleonastic, defensive, and verbally self-indulgent.

—Susan Lardner

Some toddlers walk early and talk late; others are verbally precocious but happily creep and crawl until the middle of the second year.

—Susan Ochshorn

2

: as a verb

a noun being used verbally

Examples of verbally in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Moyes had come close to returning to Everton on three separate occasions, most notably in December 2019, when he was verbally offered the role, before Carlo Ancelotti’s Napoli dismissal prompted a late change of heart from then-owner Farhad Moshiri. —Patrick Boyland, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026

Multiple people saw Google and a co-defendant enter the building, approach her and verbally forced her to go with them, the prosecutor said. —Paula Wethington, CBS News, 21 Apr. 2026

Headphones during the briefing aren’t permitted, as passengers must be able to hear, understand, and verbally confirm the instructions. —Lauren Dana Ellman, Travel + Leisure, 15 Apr. 2026

Johnson verbally committed to the Lobos over offers from USC, Cal, Florida State, Washington and UC San Diego. —John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1571, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Rhymes for verbally

• finale
• lethally
• alley
• alli
• bally
• calli
• challis
• dally
• galley
• galli
• lally
• mallee