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.”
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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.
The filmmaking team went internal on purpose, and built a movie about a young man nobody remembers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
"Somebody has done that. You don't type up a letter with someone's address on it, address it to the trust and send it. I feel like it was done on purpose," she said.
From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026
A good plan uses that shape on purpose.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 16, 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
Aunt Hila gave him far more cash than necessary to get the things off her list on purpose, and always let him keep the change.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
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.
