(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but; "the job is (just) about done"; "the baby was almost asleep when the alarm sounded"; "we're almost finished"; "the car all but ran her down"; "he nearly fainted"; "talked for nigh onto 2 hours"; "the recording is well-nigh perfect"; "virtually all the parties signed the contract"; "I was near exhausted by the run"; "most everyone agrees"
Used in a Sentence
nearly
How to use nearly in a sentence. Example sentences and definitions for nearly.
Editorial note
Billionaires would see their income reduced by nearly 50%.
Examples8
Definitions2
Parts of speech1
Quick take
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but; "the job is (just) about done"; "the baby was almost asleep when the alarm sounded"; "we're almost finished"; "the car all but ran her down"; "he nearly fainted"; "talked for nigh onto 2 hours"; "the recording is well-nigh perfect"; "virtually all the parties signed the contract"; "I was near exhausted by the run"; "most everyone agrees"
Meaning at a glance
The clearest senses and uses of nearly gathered in one view.
in a close manner; "the two phenomena are intimately connected"; "the person most nearly concerned"
Definitions
Core meanings and parts of speech for nearly.
adverb
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but; "the job is (just) about done"; "the baby was almost asleep when the alarm sounded"; "we're almost finished"; "the car all but ran her down"; "he nearly fainted"; "talked for nigh onto 2 hours"; "the recording is well-nigh perfect"; "virtually all the parties signed the contract"; "I was near exhausted by the run"; "most everyone agrees"
See also: about, almost, most, near, nigh, virtually, well-nigh
adverb
in a close manner; "the two phenomena are intimately connected"; "the person most nearly concerned"
See also: closely, intimately
Example sentences
Billionaires would see their income reduced by nearly 50%.
Otherwise when some trucker nearly drives you off the road because they have to feed their family, you're just getting what you paid for.
It turns out that C4 and Chocolate are both colloidal suspensions with nearly identical properties.
But for terrorism, we sacrifice nearly inexhaustible supplies of money and time.
Given that they want to wait until after additional fundraising rounds are completed, I doubt that your involvement with the company is nearly so problematic.
But the follow up clarifies in nearly identical language that the NSA is not listening/targeting "unless it's getting an individualized court order.
With all due respect, one thing that gets really tiresome on this board is the "OMG, this person is soo stupid because they don't know nearly as much as I do about this one particular topic" tone in this comment.
While nearly everyone else was focused on more mundane concerns of immediate importance, he was worried and tried to warn us about long-term, higher-order, societal consequences.
Frequently asked questions
Short answers drawn from the clearest meanings and examples for this word.
How do you use nearly in a sentence?
Billionaires would see their income reduced by nearly 50%.
What does nearly mean?
(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but; "the job is (just) about done"; "the baby was almost asleep when the alarm sounded"; "we're almost finished"; "the car all but ran her down"; "he nearly fainted"; "talked for nigh onto 2 hours"; "the recording is well-nigh perfect"; "virtually all the parties signed the contract"; "I was near exhausted by the run"; "most everyone agrees"
What part of speech is nearly?
nearly is commonly used as adverb.