1
as in openly
in an honest and direct manner
you'll have to tell your relatives very plainly that you don't like perfume, or they'll keep giving it to you
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in certainly
without any question
your wife is plainly upset that you didn't invite her to the game with us
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of plainly
And Republicans are plainly worried about losing the chamber.
—
Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Much like her involvement in Newcastle’s 2021 takeover, Staveley might be the front for any future bid but would plainly not be the primary funder.
—Jack Pitt-Brooke, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2025
This is psychoanalysis, plainly, and there is no escaping the mediation of the psyche.
—Literary Hub, 8 Sep. 2025
Ayala plainly accused Johnson of disregarding the city's police officers, saying the mayor only cares when there's a camera in front of him or when an officer is injured or killed in the line of duty.
—Claudia Levens, jsonline.com, 5 Sep. 2025
To put it plainly, the crowd for McQueen already knows too much.
—José Criales-Unzueta, Vogue, 5 Sep. 2025
One commenter on her story told her plainly that she had been taken advantage of.
—Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2025
If the slow-burn romances between Jim and Pam and, eventually, Dwight and Angela gave the original series heart, The Paper establishes several workplace pairings immediately and plainly, accelerating their advancement.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2025
Said plainly, the program rule defined the game.
—Emil Sayegh, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Much like her involvement in Newcastle’s 2021 takeover, Staveley might be the front for any future bid but would plainly not be the primary funder.
—Jack Pitt-Brooke, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2025
This is psychoanalysis, plainly, and there is no escaping the mediation of the psyche.
—Literary Hub, 8 Sep. 2025
Ayala plainly accused Johnson of disregarding the city's police officers, saying the mayor only cares when there's a camera in front of him or when an officer is injured or killed in the line of duty.
—Claudia Levens, jsonline.com, 5 Sep. 2025
To put it plainly, the crowd for McQueen already knows too much.
—José Criales-Unzueta, Vogue, 5 Sep. 2025
One commenter on her story told her plainly that she had been taken advantage of.
—Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2025
If the slow-burn romances between Jim and Pam and, eventually, Dwight and Angela gave the original series heart, The Paper establishes several workplace pairings immediately and plainly, accelerating their advancement.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2025
Said plainly, the program rule defined the game.
—Emil Sayegh, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plainly
Adverb
-
But Moscow has openly rejected proposals from Kyiv’s European allies to contribute to a potential peacekeeping force in Ukraine if a ceasefire deal is finalized.—
Lauren Kent,
CNN Money,
12 Sep. 2025
-
In a first-person essay published in Sports Illustrated in 2013, Collins wrote about his sexuality and became the first openly gay player in any of the four major North American men's professional sports leagues.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
12 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
The small increase in inflation is almost certainly due to Trump’s tariffs.—
Paul Bedard,
The Washington Examiner,
13 Sep. 2025
-
Carlsbad certainly belongs in the talk for the most complete teams in the section.—
Tim Meehan,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
13 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
Task is especially generous with its children and teens, allowing their faces to take up the frame, as Ruffalo’s and Pelphrey’s do, and their yearnings and fears to be voiced honestly and sincerely, as Tom’s and Robbie’s are.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
5 Sep. 2025
-
The woman has sincerely held Pentecostal Christian beliefs and practices the religion of Free Holiness, the complaint notes.—
Julia Marnin,
Miami Herald,
27 Aug. 2025
Adverb
-
Aside from these Netflix originals, the streaming platform is also home to a vast number of other documentary films and series that will surely stand the test of time and span a variety of topics.—
Christopher Rosa,
Glamour,
10 Sep. 2025
-
For Barker, announcing the deal with three of Hollywood’s great horror producers surely helped drive anticipation for Obsession and drove Focus and other buyers to mark it as a must-watch out of the festival.—
Aaron Couch,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
Bringing The Abstract Into Focus Some health topics are just plain hard to explain.—
Kristine Johnson,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Its characters also express racist, sexist, homophobic, and just plain disturbing sentiments.—
Kevin Dickinson,
Big Think,
2 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
While there is definitely debate on whether or not the graphic videos of Kirk’s death should be shown, those rejoicing in his death are receiving rapid retribution.—
Amy DeLaura,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Mike's definitely got his own thing, his own voice and everything.—
Haadiza Ogwude,
The Enquirer,
12 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
The 27-year-old bluegrass performer pulled in five CMA Award nominations this year, clearly charming critics with his grooving neo-traditional stylings that hearken back to the1990s.—
Marcus K. Dowling,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
-
In any case, now Jeremiah has to trade a rent-free room at Steven’s apartment for a rent-free room at Denise’s, but clearly, being broke does wonders for the spirit.—
Kathleen Walsh,
Vulture,
10 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
But then Belly scraps her Parisian plans and pledges her young life to Jeremiah, a rising super senior at Finch majoring in getting high and going to Cabo (which, quite honestly, is more age-appropriate than a wedding).—
Vogue,
Vogue,
11 Sep. 2025
-
But tag-ins and assists are still essential and, honestly, easier than ever.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
9 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Plainly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plainly. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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