PASSIVELY Synonyms: 44 Similar and Opposite Words

passively

adverb

Definition of passively

as in meekly

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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 passively Malaise traps passively capture bugs, but require a bit of work to maintain. — Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 4 Nov. 2026 The dry electrodes capture electrical activity passively, sending zero electrical current into the body. — New Atlas, 3 Nov. 2026 Academic research has shown that pop culture audiences don’t passively accept every message a creator delivers. — Karrin Vasby Anderson, The Conversation, 29 Oct. 2026 Mechanical vectors passively pass infectious agents from one host or surface to another; the pathogen does not develop or replicate inside the vector. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 23 Oct. 2026 Children choose their own data, probing the world with little experiments rather than passively absorbing it and learn continuously. — Charles Yeomans, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026 The system works passively, with no pumps, actuators, or other moving parts to maintain. — Michael Lydick, PC Magazine, 14 Oct. 2026 Upon landing, the craft passively self-rights and transitions its dual wingsails to wind propulsion without active morphing, achieving a high 91 percent effective mass usage across air and water. — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 30 Sep. 2026 The film instead passively constructs Tessa’s world as a colorblind one, in which racial difference simply never comes up. — Beandrea July, IndieWire, 14 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for passively

Adverb

Instead of going down meekly to the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Milwaukee Brewers swept the National League Championship Series and are headed to the World Series.

— Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026
The Brewers, of course, sealed the deal with two runs on three singles in the bottom of the eighth, and the Dodgers went meekly 1-2-3 in the ninth.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of meekly

Adverb

Once the players returned to the field, Diaz inexplicably tried a Panenka-style chip and his weak penalty sailed tamely into the arms of Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.

— Reuters, NBC news, 18 Jan. 2026
Dominik Szoboszlai had just squandered a golden chance by firing tamely into the arms of Emiliano Martinez after winning the ball back high up the field when the Kop parked their frustration and vocally declared their unwavering faith in the Dutchman.

— James Pearce, New York Times, 2 Nov. 2025

Definition of tamely

Adverb

Miloslav Druckmüller glances calmly at his group of doctoral candidates, now making final checks of the equipment in preparation for totality.

— IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 5 Nov. 2026
Luna pitched himself to county voters as a calmly effective operator who has brought down crime while building relationships with local, state and federal leaders that suffered under his predecessor’s tenure.

— Itzel Luna, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2026

Definition of calmly

Adverb

Calvo, meanwhile, sits at a desk in his hotel room, gazing into the camera lens placidly while idly sketching on a sheet of paper.

— Daniel D'Addario, Variety, 14 Oct. 2026
That’s a pretty evocative setting for a film, with the perpetual drone and roar of fighter jets overhead and an air of constricting menace pervading what should otherwise be placidly idle summer hours.

— Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of placidly

Adverb

Here, light does not issue from the far end of the room, drawing us toward salvation, but is coolly diffused through side walls made of milky Plexiglas.

— Kristian Vistrup Madsen, Artforum, 1 Nov. 2026
But Thomas and Erika are no fools, coolly telling off smiling Hitler sympathizers during a tony reception.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of coolly

Adverb

Cinematographer Lukasz Zal, who also shot Ida and Cold War, renders Fatherland in the same satiny black and white, as well as the same serenely squarish, or Academy, aspect ratio.

— Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 23 Oct. 2026
Smiling serenely, the author looks immaculately put-together, including her matte red lips, which are even more striking contrasted against her pristine white suit.

— Fawnia Soo Hoo, Allure, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of serenely

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“Passively.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/passively. Accessed 9 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of passively

adverb

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