1
as in innocently
with purity of thought and deed the devout girl vowed to live her life purely and in the service of God

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
as in solely
for nothing other than I fish purely for the fun of it—I don't care if I end up with no fish to fry

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

3
as in only
nothing more than her pleasantries were purely for show and masked her true feelings

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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 purely Synthetic dyes offer no nutritional value and are often added for purely aesthetic reasons, according to CSPI. Ross Rosenfeld, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Apr. 2025 Last week, Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin captured headlines—though not purely positive—with the launch of six women, including pop star Katy Perry, to an altitude of 66 miles (106 kilometers). ArsTechnica, 22 Apr. 2025 Often it’s predicated on purely emotional appeals and seeking out scapegoats without actually solving anything and doing great long-term damage on even the most robust of democracies. The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 21 Apr. 2025 Our vice president was there purely for a photo op with the Pope. Bluesky Social, 21 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for purely
Recent Examples of Synonyms for purely
Adverb
  • Saylor also wrote that the student's record record wouldn't be updated based solely on an unspecified finding in the National Crime Information Center that resulted in her termination.
    Bart Jansen, USA Today, 26 Apr. 2025
  • For example, in 2023, imaging giant Adobe took an unusual step by training its Firefly AI models solely on licensed stock photos and public domain works, demonstrating that alternative approaches are possible.
    ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 25 Apr. 2025
Adverb
  • This time, though, the satellites have not only been significantly upgraded, but represent the largest deployment for Amazon, the company said.
    Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 28 Apr. 2025
  • So, Baeza was awarded 37.5 points instead of 50 because of only five starters.
    John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 27 Apr. 2025
Adverb
  • The cardinal had his passport confiscated after he was arrested in 2022 for allegedly failing to register the pro-democracy 612 Humanitarian Relief Fund properly.
    Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 24 Apr. 2025
  • In these settings, properly understanding human social cues and context is even more critical, as even small misjudgments in intention run the risk of injury.
    Mack DeGeurin, Popular Science, 24 Apr. 2025
Adverb
  • Despite having helped define the last 25 years of first-person shooters with the original Halo trilogy, Bungie has spent the last decade focusing exclusively on live-service games like Destiny.
    Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 2 May 2025
  • The slate of nominees have been announced for the 12th annual K-LOVE Fan Awards, Billboard can exclusively reveal.
    Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 2 May 2025
Adverb
  • And just to keep things interesting, Kingston wasn’t quite done adventuring.
    Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 3 May 2025
  • Blue made her tour debut on the 2023 Renaissance World Tour in Paris at just 11 years old.
    Caché McClay, USA Today, 3 May 2025
Adverb
  • Tarot horoscopes simply show the easiest path toward that growth.
    Meghan Rose, Glamour, 1 May 2025
  • Justice Brett Kavanaugh said the justices could simply return the case to the 11th Circuit by saying a provision in the Constitution doesn’t prevent a lawsuit and let the lower-court judges sort out how much discretion police deserve in making mistakes.
    Bart Jansen, USA Today, 30 Apr. 2025
Adverb
  • But to prevent the trade from becoming merely a partial-season rental of Ozuna, the Marlins would likely insist on dipping into the Braves' wellspring of pitching prospects.
    Ross Rosenfeld, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Apr. 2025
  • Healthcare stakeholders must realize that regulations are merely a baseline and adopt security-first system architectures, embedding privacy and resilience into their core design.
    Chris Bowen, Forbes.com, 23 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Purely.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/purely. Accessed 5 May. 2025.

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