on purpose

Idioms

Deliberately, intentionally, as in He left the photo out of the story on purpose . Shakespeare's use of this idiom was among the earliest; it appears in The Comedy of Errors (4:3): “On purpose shut the doors against his way.”
accidentally on purpose . Seemingly accidentally but actually deliberately, as in She stepped on his foot accidentally on purpose . This generally jocular phrase was first recorded in 1862.

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.

Venegas is now adding her voice to this shared-but-fractured written history; albeit, not entirely on purpose.

From Los Angeles Times • May 11, 2026

But, at this point, losing on purpose is so ingrained that players don’t always believe their competitors are doing their best.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

This quote helps explain why Chelsea may have run less on purpose, particularly in the first part of the season.

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

NBA teams are increasingly losing games on purpose to improve their draft prospects and basketball must consider every possible remedy to stamp out deliberate "tanking," the league's chief said Saturday.

From Barron's • Feb. 14, 2026

One scrawny boy with a moon-round face stood on his tiptoes, unable to see over two girls who seemed to be blocking his view on purpose.

From "A Wish in the Dark" by Christina Soontornvat

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023