not really

idiom

—used to say "no" in a way that is not very forceful or definite

"Was the movie good?" "Not really."

"Do you want to go to a movie?" "No, not really."

Examples of not really in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Tens of millions of people is not really a cult following. —Seija Rankin, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Apr. 2024

Unlimited free agency is not really in the best interest of the sport. —Jim Alexander, Orange County Register, 12 Apr. 2024

And as the possibility that the economy is not really landing looms, some economists and officials suggest that the Fed’s next move may even be a rate increase — not a reduction. —Jeanna Smialek, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2024

There were not really books around at all, and in a dictatorship everything was censored. —Lizz Schumer, Peoplemag, 2 Apr. 2024

And these developer kits were used by game developers, not really by consumers. —Susan Howson, Quartz, 2 Apr. 2024

What the novel is about is a complicated, not really answerable question. —Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 1 Apr. 2024

Repeating their appearances from Afterlife are Celeste O’Connor’s Lucky and Logan Kim’s Podcast, although they’re not really given much to do. —Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Mar. 2024

There are not really complicated or interesting political dynamics at play during these conflicts. —Erik Kain, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024