as in slightly
by a very small margin
we barely made it to the church on time
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of barely
The pair barely survived twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome, which involves uneven blood flow from the placenta.
—
Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 23 May 2026
Ewing hit a slow roller to third base for an easy final out, barely two hours after the first one.
—Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 23 May 2026
From barely recognizable ruins to luxury resorts, Ireland’s castles are favorite destinations on visitors’ itineraries.
—Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 22 May 2026
This butter yellow manicure features a single nude accent nail with a barely there flower in the center.
—Ariel Wodarcyk, InStyle, 22 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for barely
Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 23 May 2026
Ewing hit a slow roller to third base for an easy final out, barely two hours after the first one.
—Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 23 May 2026
From barely recognizable ruins to luxury resorts, Ireland’s castles are favorite destinations on visitors’ itineraries.
—Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 22 May 2026
This butter yellow manicure features a single nude accent nail with a barely there flower in the center.
—Ariel Wodarcyk, InStyle, 22 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for barely
Recent Examples of Synonyms for barely
Adverb
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The Shenzhou spacecraft is similar to, but also slightly larger than, Russia's Soyuz crew spacecraft.—
Andrew Jones,
Space.com,
24 May 2026
-
The Golden Nugget Atlantic City offers a slightly more low-key alternative to some of the larger casino resorts nearby.—
Jessica Chapel,
Condé Nast Traveler,
23 May 2026
Adverb
-
The starter allowed just two hits through his first two trips through the Glendora order.—
Justin Vigil Zuniga,
Daily News,
27 May 2026
-
Among the graves along the Somme are those of five young men who just happen to share the name Alfred Webb.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 May 2026
Adverb
-
In the bottom of the 11th, UCLA loaded the bases with no outs after an official review determined that Roman Martin was narrowly safe at third base following a bunt.—
Los Angeles Times Staff,
Los Angeles Times,
25 May 2026
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The debate is narrowly framed as to whether a student should pick either a computer science major or a philosophy major.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2026
Adverb
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Spielberg is hardly the first major Hollywood figure to speak out against the use of AI in movies.—
Jack Dunn,
Variety,
28 May 2026
-
The last four goalies in the playoffs this season were hardly sure things going into the postseason.—
Matthew Fairburn,
New York Times,
28 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Barely.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/barely. Accessed 31 May. 2026.
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