as in carefully
without any relaxation of standards or precision
strictly speaking, Columbus did not discover America—the people living there had long known about it the rules must be strictly obeyed
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Recent Examples of strictly
Western governments and the International Atomic Energy Agency have raised alarms over Iran’s enrichment of uranium to near weapons-grade levels and disputes over inspections, while Tehran insists its program is strictly civilian.
—
Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 28 Apr. 2026
As such, reducing your cat’s protein intake should only be done if strictly necessary and under your veterinarian’s supervision.
—Bestreviews, Mercury News, 27 Apr. 2026
The purpose of my college’s incoming students page seemed to be strictly to make friends.
—Mary Frances Ruskell, CNN Money, 26 Apr. 2026
The virtual influencer is not, strictly speaking, new.
—T. M. Brown, New Yorker, 25 Apr. 2026
Harding’s caucus often has chastised Democrats for not adhering strictly to state budget limitations.
—Keith M. Phaneuf, Hartford Courant, 25 Apr. 2026
Nvidia recently released its first standalone CPU, adding to existing competition Intel faces from longtime rival AMD, as well as from server chips based on the ARM architecture (including an upcoming chip that ARM is making itself, instead of strictly licensing the chip design to other companies).
—Alexei Oreskovic, Fortune, 24 Apr. 2026
Critics express doubts Some health experts have suggested that legalization in the states has led to stronger and stronger cannabis products, which need to be researched rather than categorized less strictly than before.
—Gene Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 24 Apr. 2026
Some critics of the industry have suggested that legalization in the states has led to stronger and stronger cannabis products, which need to be researched rather than categorized less strictly than before.
—ABC News, 23 Apr. 2026
Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 28 Apr. 2026
As such, reducing your cat’s protein intake should only be done if strictly necessary and under your veterinarian’s supervision.
—Bestreviews, Mercury News, 27 Apr. 2026
The purpose of my college’s incoming students page seemed to be strictly to make friends.
—Mary Frances Ruskell, CNN Money, 26 Apr. 2026
The virtual influencer is not, strictly speaking, new.
—T. M. Brown, New Yorker, 25 Apr. 2026
Harding’s caucus often has chastised Democrats for not adhering strictly to state budget limitations.
—Keith M. Phaneuf, Hartford Courant, 25 Apr. 2026
Nvidia recently released its first standalone CPU, adding to existing competition Intel faces from longtime rival AMD, as well as from server chips based on the ARM architecture (including an upcoming chip that ARM is making itself, instead of strictly licensing the chip design to other companies).
—Alexei Oreskovic, Fortune, 24 Apr. 2026
Critics express doubts Some health experts have suggested that legalization in the states has led to stronger and stronger cannabis products, which need to be researched rather than categorized less strictly than before.
—Gene Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 24 Apr. 2026
Some critics of the industry have suggested that legalization in the states has led to stronger and stronger cannabis products, which need to be researched rather than categorized less strictly than before.
—ABC News, 23 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for strictly
Adverb
-
Rice’s lyrics are carefully enunciated and given nuanced line readings.—
Christopher Arnott,
Hartford Courant,
3 May 2026
-
By carefully limiting transport, access to these sites remains more orderly, preventing blockage and ensuring continuous turnover.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
3 May 2026
Adverb
-
Magyar’s campaign has been rigidly domestic.—
Christian Edwards,
CNN Money,
12 Apr. 2026
-
Now, when a ball-strike call is challenged, the strike zone will be rigidly defined based on a batter’s height.—
Juliette Arcodia,
NBC news,
24 Mar. 2026
Adverb
-
The work moves between material and virtual economies, asking what, precisely, gives an object its worth.—
Emily Watlington,
ARTnews.com,
1 May 2026
-
Instead, this motion risks making Los Angeles a national symbol of progressive overreach at precisely the wrong time.—
Matt Klink,
Oc Register,
1 May 2026
Adverb
-
Second, hold the insurance industry accountable by rigorously enforcing state law and demanding transparency.—
Ben Allen,
Oc Register,
2 May 2026
-
The earliest peptides were rigorously tested and FDA approved, but for the most part, the new entrants into the peptide market are unregulated.—
Erin Vanderhoof,
Vanity Fair,
29 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Strictly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/strictly. Accessed 7 May. 2026.
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