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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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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Recent Examples of plainly
In doing so, Florida officials have boxed themselves into a constitutional contradiction that is now plainly visible.
—
Stephana Ferrell, The Orlando Sentinel, 21 Jan. 2026
If recognition feels overdue, share results plainly and let your consistency speak, because quiet confidence reads stronger than big promises.
—Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 21 Jan. 2026
This was plainly inaccurate, according to security-camera footage.
—Jonathan Blitzer, New Yorker, 19 Jan. 2026
But this is just plainly wrong.
—ABC News, 18 Jan. 2026
No restaurant says it more plainly than La Jalisciense Detroit, a dine-in restaurant set inside a market, where shoppers can purchase Hispanic groceries and ingredients.
—Amanda Hancock, IndyStar, 16 Jan. 2026
Speak plainly and lead gently to strengthen trust and boost momentum.
—Tarot.com, New York Daily News, 14 Jan. 2026
That might even be true at Red Bull and his decision to step away from the game’s day-to-day, using that distance to speak plainly about fixture congestion, burnout and the many, many issues on the game’s horizon.
—Sebastian Stafford-Bloor, New York Times, 14 Jan. 2026
For the first time, Powell plainly articulated the Fed’s fight to retain independence from a president seeking to sway it.
—Will Gottsegen, The Atlantic, 13 Jan. 2026
Stephana Ferrell, The Orlando Sentinel, 21 Jan. 2026
If recognition feels overdue, share results plainly and let your consistency speak, because quiet confidence reads stronger than big promises.
—Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 21 Jan. 2026
This was plainly inaccurate, according to security-camera footage.
—Jonathan Blitzer, New Yorker, 19 Jan. 2026
But this is just plainly wrong.
—ABC News, 18 Jan. 2026
No restaurant says it more plainly than La Jalisciense Detroit, a dine-in restaurant set inside a market, where shoppers can purchase Hispanic groceries and ingredients.
—Amanda Hancock, IndyStar, 16 Jan. 2026
Speak plainly and lead gently to strengthen trust and boost momentum.
—Tarot.com, New York Daily News, 14 Jan. 2026
That might even be true at Red Bull and his decision to step away from the game’s day-to-day, using that distance to speak plainly about fixture congestion, burnout and the many, many issues on the game’s horizon.
—Sebastian Stafford-Bloor, New York Times, 14 Jan. 2026
For the first time, Powell plainly articulated the Fed’s fight to retain independence from a president seeking to sway it.
—Will Gottsegen, The Atlantic, 13 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plainly
Adverb
-
While the general grifter is allowed to reinvent themselves, be openly ambitious, and romanticize their crimes, the female grifter—and especially the SGG—is met with significantly less permission and a higher demand for likability.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
23 Jan. 2026
-
When people feel safe expressing themselves openly and honestly, trust is strengthened on both sides, and collaboration becomes more productive.—
Britney Porter,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
Jessie Buckley is almost certainly going to win an Oscar come March.—
Radhika Seth,
Vogue,
12 Jan. 2026
-
Skinny Pedro must certainly have fallen victim to some kind of sorcery.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
Taking a closer look at the societal environments that overshadow low-income communities must be in the equation when sincerely working to stop child abuse.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
11 Jan. 2026
-
And then there’s Hanse, who sincerely assumed he was brought on to be the preserver of tradition.—
Brody Miller,
New York Times,
6 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
But Arca always told me to trust him, and surely enough, the song was a hit.—
Jessica Roiz,
Billboard,
8 Jan. 2026
-
In what is surely the most pawsome news of the day, this means there's an entirely new, adorable, and totally adoptable lineup of furry players to root for.—
Lauren Huff,
Entertainment Weekly,
8 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
But there’s something very useful about laying plain how easy this test should be for the leader of the free world, and how anyone who boasts about crushing it has, in many aspects, failed it in a brand-new way.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
9 Jan. 2026
-
Most of us are simply not used to being this frequently upset, enraged, infuriated, or just plain disgusted by public occurrences.—
Susan B. Glasser,
New Yorker,
30 Dec. 2025
Adverb
-
Tankaneo Double-Breasted Cropped Trench My number-one petite fashion hack is to buy cropped styles that’ll be full-length on my shorter frame, and this trench definitely delivers.—
Jamie Allison Sanders,
PEOPLE,
11 Jan. 2026
-
That's definitely a skeleton crew, as the current nominal crew size for the ISS is seven.—
Mike Wall,
Space.com,
10 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
Which is to say that when done honestly, the reader creates alongside the writer, and ChatGPT-3 can’t ever really read, not really.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
21 Jan. 2026
-
And honestly looks amazing, and having the best time doing it.—
Hedy Phillips,
PEOPLE,
20 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
Ads will be clearly labeled and separate from responses, placed at the bottom of answers when relevant to the conversation, and will not influence ChatGPT’s outputs.—
Charlie Fink,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
-
The room was brighter now, and Camilla could see everything more clearly.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
22 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Plainly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plainly. Accessed 23 Jan. 2026.
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