1
as in barely
by a very small margin
I thought the first one was slightly better
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
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
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Recent Examples of slightly
One slightly wrong rate in a budget, procurement forecast, or loan estimate easily moves millions of dollars in the wrong direction.
—
Arkansas Online, 8 Jan. 2026
Pale pink flower clusters that appear on the light green foliage in summer, slightly earlier than other sedum varieties.
—Miranda Crowell, Better Homes & Gardens, 8 Jan. 2026
Legette, meanwhile, had an OK season in 2024 as a rookie but has seen all of his numbers slightly tail off in 2025.
—Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 8 Jan. 2026
Of course, Martha has tips for making the work slightly easier.
—Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 7 Jan. 2026
But if a person seeking status is already wealthy or attains corporate sponsorship, for instance, a viable pathway to citizenship opens up, even if only slightly.
—Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 7 Jan. 2026
Last June, however, after vaccine production had begun, H3N2 changed slightly.
—Erika Edwards, NBC news, 7 Jan. 2026
Key Takeaways Women who drank tea had slightly higher total hip bone mineral density than those who did not, according to a 10-year study.
—Fran Kritz, Verywell Health, 7 Jan. 2026
Feet shoulder-width apart, pointed slightly out.
—Gretchen Reynolds, Washington Post, 7 Jan. 2026
Arkansas Online, 8 Jan. 2026
Pale pink flower clusters that appear on the light green foliage in summer, slightly earlier than other sedum varieties.
—Miranda Crowell, Better Homes & Gardens, 8 Jan. 2026
Legette, meanwhile, had an OK season in 2024 as a rookie but has seen all of his numbers slightly tail off in 2025.
—Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 8 Jan. 2026
Of course, Martha has tips for making the work slightly easier.
—Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 7 Jan. 2026
But if a person seeking status is already wealthy or attains corporate sponsorship, for instance, a viable pathway to citizenship opens up, even if only slightly.
—Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 7 Jan. 2026
Last June, however, after vaccine production had begun, H3N2 changed slightly.
—Erika Edwards, NBC news, 7 Jan. 2026
Key Takeaways Women who drank tea had slightly higher total hip bone mineral density than those who did not, according to a 10-year study.
—Fran Kritz, Verywell Health, 7 Jan. 2026
Feet shoulder-width apart, pointed slightly out.
—Gretchen Reynolds, Washington Post, 7 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slightly
Adverb
-
Slot’s team barely looked back to see City and Arsenal stumbling.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
8 Nov. 2025
-
The mashup lasted barely three minutes, but its impact has echoed for decades.—
Dave Quinn,
PEOPLE,
7 Nov. 2025
Adverb
-
Indeed, oil futures were little changed Sunday night after trading began following the US intervention in Venezuela.—
Matt Egan,
CNN Money,
5 Jan. 2026
-
At the time Kubrick started making Full Metal Jacket, a brutal war drama based on Gustav Hasford’s excellent but relatively little-known 1979 novel, The Short Timers, many felt that American cinema hadn’t yet fully reckoned with the Vietnam War.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
31 Dec. 2025
Adverb
-
Leaders in Congress agreed and sent out armadas of patriot privateers to do just that, plundering British shipping around the Atlantic rim and forcing Royal Navy warships to redeploy to convoy duty.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
-
There are also just more bears these days.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
7 Nov. 2025
Adverb
-
His most famous novel, Ninety-Two in the Shade (a 1974 National Book Award finalist), is nominally about a Key West burnout whose determination to become a local fishing guide leads him to ruin.—
Tyler Austin Harper,
The Atlantic,
30 Oct. 2025
-
And after Musk left DOGE, initially nominally headed by former healthcare executive Amy Gleason, operates primarily through staffers in cost-cutting positions spread across government departments and agencies.—
Miranda Jeyaretnam,
Time,
28 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
The bill narrowly failed in the Senate.—
Becca Savransky,
Idaho Statesman,
8 Jan. 2026
-
Dash camera video captured the teen speeding away from the traffic stop and narrowly missing a deputy standing in the road.—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
7 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
Chicken farming contributes non-negligibly to Earth’s greenhouse gas emissions, albeit less so than the beef and lamb industries.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
-
The Moon, whose magnetic field is negligibly small, does not regulate itself in this fashion at all.—
Ethan Siegel,
Big Think,
4 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
With those turbulent waters somewhat behind us, the ones under the ship claim another victim, and poor Britani runs off to throw up over the side of the boat.—
Tom Smyth,
Vulture,
5 Nov. 2025
-
But the increases the council approved are somewhat smaller than what Mayor Todd Gloria’s staff had proposed.—
David Garrick,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Slightly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slightly. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
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