completely
Americanadverb
-
to the whole amount or extent; fully.
Although the river never dries up completely, there are times when the water is barely a trickle.
-
thoroughly; totally.
I was so completely disoriented by the chiming of Big Ben as I stood below it that I walked into someone with my ice cream.
Great storytelling and successful social media campaigns are completely interconnected.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of completely
Explanation
Use completely to describe something that is totally and utterly...something. A completely ridiculous idea is absolutely crazy and stupid. Completely is an adverb that comes from the Latin completus, "to fill up." We use it to mean "entirely" or "wholly." So if a building is completely destroyed, no part of it is left standing. Reading a newspaper story or watching a documentary film completely means you finished it from beginning to end. And doing so can completely change your view on an issue.
Vocabulary lists containing completely
Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -ly
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Novel Study: The Hobbit, Chapters 6–9
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"When you dive into the Iliad, you really understand that Homer was an Anatolian. You find anecdotes and cultural references that are completely unknown elsewhere," he said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
His buffoonish bravado and frequent failures alienate everyone who is not completely in his camp.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
The site, which is currently almost completely demolished, is being renovated by social welfare group CAW Oost-Vlaanderen.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
"The most important thing is that it's brought a completely different and younger demographic into the sport," says Glamorgan chair Mark Rhydderch-Roberts.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
Darn those anonymous people and their completely reasonable desire for privacy.
From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
