morally

adverb

Definition of morallynext
as in innocently
with purity of thought and deed a politician who is in the habit of acting legally without behaving morally

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of morally He was tasked with holding the movie’s most complex, morally challenging ideas, as a young boy running from trauma and left to decide between danger and redemption. — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 2 Sep. 2026 But one price for all, a concept conceived by the Quakers, who believed that charging different prices to different people was morally abject, became commonplace. — Audrey McGlinchy, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026 Bardem plays Miguel, a celebrated architect tempted by a morally dubious but hugely lucrative commission to build a secret survivalist bunker for a reclusive tech billionaire, Andrew (Paul Dano). — Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 27 Aug. 2026 Their agenda was backward-looking, morally coercive, and steeped in righteous absolutism. — Literary Hub, 25 Aug. 2026 To make merit means to do something morally good that will generate good karma – actions that are believed to impact this life and future ones. — Brooke Schedneck, The Conversation, 24 Aug. 2026 The Catholic faith morally opposes the death penalty, yet many of the state’s top Catholic leaders have supported measures to expand it. — Miami Herald, 22 Aug. 2026 McAdam later said Dominguez was incapable of understanding that his acts were morally and legally wrong. — Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 20 Aug. 2026 Deadline’s Full Coverage Of Disney’s D23 Fan Event The VisionQuest also features James Spader as Ultron, Todd Stashwick as the morally ambiguous mercenary Paladin and Faran Tahir reprising his role of Raz from the MCU kickstarter pic Iron Man. — Katie Campione, Deadline, 14 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for morally
  1. innocently
  2. purely
  3. properly
  4. chastely
  5. virtuously
  6. righteously
Adverb
  • Homer, of course, is perhaps the most lovable dimwit ever created, and his dynamic with Bart — the quick-to-anger suburban dad, the innocently mischievous adolescent son — is pure Americana.
    — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Sep. 2026
  • The Network Started With A Missing File The origins of the incident started innocently.
    — Ron Schmelzer, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of innocently
Adverb
  • Vasseur did not wish to discuss the possible final 2026 championship outlook, saying his attention was purely on present performance and taking steps; focus on the process, not the outcome.
    — Luke Smith, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Catering to the Volume, Not the Power User From a purely capitalistic standpoint, power users who demand high literacy, strict prompt adherence, and investigative rigor represent a tiny fraction of Google's user base.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of purely
Adverb
  • The Georgia Republican Assembly and its political action committee failed to properly disclose six figures in spending used to support numerous candidates in recent years, the commission unanimously decided.
    — AJ Willingham, AJC.com, 10 Sep. 2026
  • The town said there were also rare cases in which the billing software did not properly reconcile the charges.
    — Dillon Thomas, CBS News, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of properly
Adverb
  • Take The Music Lesson, a study of a young woman playing the virginal, closely watched by a gentleman, which Graham-Dixon reads as a depiction of Collegiants chastely performing and singing psalms.
    — Clare Bucknell, Harpers Magazine, 23 June 2026
Definition of chastely
Adverb
  • Some of us virtuously recycle items that will be transported across the world to smother island nations in single-use plastic bags and water bottles, milk jugs, yogurt tubs, pet food and potato chip bags, Styrofoam meat trays, Coke bottles, Amazon mailing envelopes, and fast-food wrappers.
    — Caroline Fraser, The New York Review of Books, 4 Apr. 2026
  • The glorious sweep of progress toward Roman civilization and prosperity means the end of an idyllic, virtuously rustic Golden Age.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 3 Sep. 2025
Definition of virtuously
Adverb
  • Witnesses’ fumbling looks bad by comparison, and Ossoff sounds righteously angry without being rageful.
    — David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 24 July 2026
  • With raping, raving misogynists in the highest offices and loudest cultural bandwidths of the world, women of all classes have cause to be righteously filled with rage, betrayal, and disappointment.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 16 June 2026
Definition of righteously

Browse Nearby Words

moralizing
morally
morals
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Cite this Entry

“Morally.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/morally. Accessed 14 Sep. 2026.

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