almost
Americanadverb
adverb
Usage
See most.
Synonym Usage
Almost, most, nearly, well-nigh all mean within a small degree of or short space of. Almost implies very little short of: almost exhausted; almost home. Most is colloquial for almost. Nearly implies a slightly greater distance or degree than almost : nearly well; nearly to the city. Well-nigh, a more literary word, implies a barely appreciable distance or extent: well-nigh forgotten; well-nigh home.
Etymology
Origin of almost
First recorded before 1000; Middle English almost, almast, almest, Old English eall(e) mǣst “nearly all”
Explanation
Almost means "nearly," "roughly," or "not quite." If you're almost as tall as your brother, it means he's still just a bit taller than you are. If you almost got a great job, you came close but weren't ultimately successful, and if you're almost qualified to get your pilot's license, nobody's going to let you fly a plane quite yet. The adverb almost is perfect for describing things you come close to doing, or states you haven't yet reached. It has an Old English root, eallmæst, "nearly all," or literally, "mostly all."
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.
Almost half are VLCCs, capable of carrying 2 million barrels of oil in a single voyage.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 2, 2026
Almost 1.2 million undocumented migrants have sought legal status in Spain under a scheme that has defied a growing European crackdown on irregular immigration, according to final figures released on Thursday.
From Barron's • Jul. 2, 2026
Read more: Almost all of the Nasdaq-100’s gains in the first half of 2026 came from just 10 stocks.
From MarketWatch • Jul. 1, 2026
In a quite different key is HBO’s “Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness: An Almost History of America,” and exactly what you might expect from its title and star.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 30, 2026
Almost as long as they had been code breakers, Elizebeth and William had been concerned about the impact of secrecy on democracy.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
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.
