SLIGHTLY Synonyms: 94 Similar and Opposite Words

slightly

adverb

Definition of slightly

as in barely

by a very small margin I thought the first one was slightly better

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in little

in a very small quantity or degree he was slightly curious about the identity of the wine, but not enough to bother asking

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 slightly The boy was spotted sitting on his own at a hut about 8,200 feet (2,500 meters) above sea level – slightly more than halfway up the country’s tallest mountain – by a worker on Thursday, according to CNN’s affiliate TV Asahi. — Chris Lau, CNN Money, 23 Aug. 2026 The kitchen itself, though, feels fairly unused—one tap wasn’t working, the cutlery was slightly rusty, and the whole setup had a ramshackle quality. — Megan Rose Murray, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Aug. 2026 Budva in Montenegro is in ninth, and Croatia's Dubrovnik rounds out the list in tenth—with the most likely chance of rain, fewer average hours of sunshine and slightly more expensive accommodation. — Rebecca Ann Hughes, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026 Silvia looks calm, his eyes open and head propped up slightly as Hood prayed furiously over him. — Miami Herald, 22 Aug. 2026 The reality is slightly less cute but certainly just as important. — Sal Pizarro, Mercury News, 22 Aug. 2026 Our recipe tasters loved the combination of melty cheese and slightly spicy green chiles. — Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 Aug. 2026 Hairstylist Justine Marjan also suggests keeping curly-coily hair slightly wet with water to help with detangling and pulling it back with a wide-tooth comb. — Marci Robin, Allure, 21 Aug. 2026 Sandisk's sole focus and also part of Micron's business — is slightly slower but cheaper. — Alexa Lomonaco, CNBC, 21 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for slightly

Adverb

Some come so quickly that there’s barely time to process how they were accomplished.

— Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 26 Aug. 2026
Azurá Stevens, the franchise’s marquee signing worth just over $1 million a year, barely cracked a 10-point average while missing nearly a quarter of the season due to injuries and personal concerns.

— Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of barely

Adverb

Futures were little changed early Thursday, a sign traders are still deciding whether the sell-off was a one-day scare or the start of a real showdown between the Treasury and the bond market.

— Anniek Bao, CNBC, 21 Aug. 2026
Ultimately, the Community Shield may tell us very little about who will lift the Premier League trophy next May.

— Dean Jones, New York Times, 15 Aug. 2026

Definition of little

Adverb

But his record of publicly interacting with Piker — including at a pool party just before the primary — remains a sore point among some Michigan Democrats.

— Nicholas Wu, semafor.com, 27 Aug. 2026
Search and rescue efforts are only just beginning, and these first hours are filled with uncertainty, but also with hope.

— Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of just

Adverb

Flock argues that its cameras, which are nominally intended to scan license plates, could help solve crimes and find missing persons.

— Frank Landymore, Futurism, 27 Aug. 2026
Before its founding, seven agencies nominally held responsibility for various elements of consumer protection, but none had it as a primary mission.

— Jennifer Pahlka, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of nominally

Adverb

Earlier this month, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley narrowly won the Democratic nomination after one of the most chaotic and unusual primaries in the state’s history.

— Dan Kaufman, New Yorker, 28 Aug. 2026
In 2024, Burke’s squad dragged itself off the mat after an awful (yet at the time, typical) start to the season to go unbeaten in 12 of 13 matches down the stretch and narrowly miss the playoffs.

— Kels Dayton, Hartford Courant, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of narrowly

Adverb

In an economy where wages are anchored to what compute would cost to replicate human work, human labor becomes economically marginal—not worthless, but negligibly small relative to the overall pie.

— Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 4 Apr. 2026
In other words, the chin contributes negligibly to resisting chewing forces.

— Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 24 Jan. 2026

Definition of negligibly

Adverb

The Torcal’s response on-center is deliberately somewhat muted, progressing as the driver turns the wheel, helping maintain the illusion that the Torcal’s mere inertia is sufficient to carry it through irregularities in the path ahead.

— Byron Hurd, The Drive, 27 Aug. 2026
Had Meta refused to settle and lost, the company could have faced as much as $200 billion in combined penalties, Reuters reported — suggesting that the social media giant was probably at least somewhat concerned about the possibility of a loss.

— Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of somewhat

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slighting

slightly

slightness

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“Slightly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slightly. Accessed 30 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of slightly

adverb

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