TENTATIVELY Synonyms: 31 Similar and Opposite Words

tentatively

adverb

Definition of tentatively

as in hesitantly

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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 tentatively Ten weeks from Thursday’s game would tentatively put Stribling back on the field in mid-November. — Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 16 Sep. 2026 De Niro, 83, is currently in talks to portray legendary Major League Baseball figure Tommy Lasorda, who worked for the Dodgers in several different roles for seven decades, in a new movie tentatively titled Tommy & Me. — Tommy McArdle, PEOPLE, 16 Sep. 2026 The plan, tentatively, is for next year’s gathering to take place in Pittsburgh, while the 2028 tournament will be staged in Columbus. — Aaron Portzline, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026 The stadium, tentatively named The Railyards, would sit along the Chicago River from Roosevelt Road to 18th Street near the existing Amtrak maintenance facility in the South Loop. — Chris Tye, CBS News, 8 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for tentatively

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tentatively

Adverb

In the public imagination, Housewives with a capital H are fame-hungry attention hogs who would rather throw the $400 bottle of Château Brane-Cantenac Margaux that’s sitting in front of us than sip it, as Cosby is hesitantly doing now.

— Brian Moylan, Vulture, 16 Sep. 2026
Diane refuses, but April hesitantly makes the trip, only to learn that Theo — an artistic dilettante who lives in the city with his girlfriend, Lucy (Odessa A’zion) — has been lunching with Sandra behind her back.

— Natalia Winkelman, Variety, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of hesitantly

Adverb

The revolutionary idea that the ruled rather than the rulers decide the rules emerged only haltingly.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Sep. 2026
The department exists to preserve some semblance of equal justice in the United States — imperfectly, haltingly, often overbearingly for some and cautiously for others — and help ensure that the nation is governed by the rule of law.

— New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of haltingly

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“Tentatively.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tentatively. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of tentatively

adverb

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