basically
Americanadverb
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in a way that involves or affects the fundamental character or condition.
The building needs a few repairs, but is basically sound.
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as a recap of the main point or idea; if put simply or briefly.
Basically, her advice boils down to “Eat a sensible, balanced diet, and relax.”
adverb
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in a fundamental or elementary manner; essentially
strident and basically unpleasant
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(sentence modifier) in essence; in summary; put simply
basically we had underestimated mother nature
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of basically
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.
"They are not and cannot be the problem. So, migrants are basically being scapegoated," Okey-Uche added.
From BBC • Jun. 11, 2026
“When I’m working, I just don’t cook at all basically, and then when I get time off I like to putter around in the kitchen. I’m not very good, but I like to do it.”
From MarketWatch • Jun. 11, 2026
"And it's basically a sea of ions, which is why we base our technology around it, so we can pull those ions out into an electrospray."
From Science Daily • Jun. 10, 2026
Sagan has a gig that any sports nut would envy: He basically gets paid to watch games.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 8, 2026
It was terrifying and epically embarrassing and basically a nightmare.
From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell
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.
