MOSTLY Synonyms: 57 Similar and Opposite Words

mostly

adverb

ˈmōst-lē

Definition of mostly

as in mainly

for the most part the weather this month has been mostly mild

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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 mostly Vilanch mostly remembers the embarrassment of realizing he’d been taken. — Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 18 Aug. 2026 The forecast also looks mostly dry, with some potential for rain mainly early next week. — Kansas City Star, 18 Aug. 2026 In the prelapsarian days of 2015, when our would-be dictator was mostly a punch line, hipsters in Williamsburg started wearing MAGA hats as a joke. — Mark Guiducci, Vanity Fair, 18 Aug. 2026 Equities around the world were under pressure amid the move higher in yields, though many of the globe’s largest markets were able to mostly whether the storm. — Fred Imbert, CNBC, 18 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for mostly

Recent Examples of Synonyms for mostly

Adverb

The market is still concentrated right now, with US consumers mainly seeing sun-protective clothing in trendy athleisure – think Lululemon, REI and Nike.

— Ramishah Maruf, CNN Money, 16 Aug. 2026
Garlic Garlic is a superfood that’s been used for medicinal purposes for centuries, mainly due to its natural immune-supporting properties.

— Lindsay Curtis, HEALTH, 15 Aug. 2026

Definition of mainly

Adverb

The Army's most significant response has been the Future Soldier Preparatory Course, a pre-basic training program primarily at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, for recruits who narrowly miss academic or body-fat standards.

— Steven Beynon, ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026
Hancock, who flashed high-level plays last year as a safety, has primarily played as a nickel corner in Leonhard’s new scheme.

— Joe Buscaglia, New York Times, 16 Aug. 2026

Definition of primarily

Adverb

One unusual thing about the Dead is that the bulk of their oeuvre was penned by non-performing songwriters, chiefly Robert Hunter, who collaborated mainly with Jerry Garcia.

— Diana Arterian, Literary Hub, 13 Aug. 2026
Denise has also been keeping secrets, chiefly about the manuscript for a novel she’s been banging out on a typewriter in the basement, one that happens to be about a woman who fantasizes about leaving her family behind for life in New York.

— Alison Willmore, Vulture, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of chiefly

Adverb

While the good-paying white-collar jobs in the ‘burbs are getting slashed, the substantial workforce Capital One inherited from Discover in the city of Chicago largely has been spared.

— The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 14 Aug. 2026
In League Two, tweaks to SCMP were largely thrown out because they were seen as worthless.

— Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of largely

Adverb

Roughly two-thirds of those workers are migrants, predominantly young women recruited from South Asia on three-year contracts.

— Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 12 Aug. 2026
But tensions have opened up between data center boosters and some community organizations that want to see more jobs and economic benefits go to local residents, especially predominantly poor Hispanic farm and food processing workers.

— Nathaniel Meyersohn, CNN Money, 11 Aug. 2026

Definition of predominantly

Adverb

Trade along the route remains tiny compared with major throughways like the Suez Canal and is dominated by Russian oil and gas, which – along with a few other LNG buyers in Asia – principally flow to China.

— Simone McCarthy, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2026
Some Hoodoo practitioners have begun calling themselves witches, reflecting the increasingly positive reassessment of that term, which historically referred principally to practitioners of occult harming practices.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of principally

Adverb

But with the human element, basically no one has a say in where they’re born, right?

— Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 16 Aug. 2026
The story explains the philosophical shift in more detail, but new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion is basically trying to get time back on their side and be the aggressor.

— Brooks Kubena, New York Times, 15 Aug. 2026

Definition of basically

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“Mostly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mostly. Accessed 20 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of mostly

adverb

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