ideally

American  

[ahy-dee-uh-lee] / aɪˈdi ə li /

adverb

1. in accordance with an ideal; perfectly.

2. in an ideal world; in principle; theoretically.

3. in idea, thought, or imagination.

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Etymology

Origin of ideally

First recorded in 1590–1600; ideal + -ly

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Explanation

Use the adverb ideally to mean "perfectly" or "preferably." Ideally, you would always be ideally positioned to get a clear view of the parade going by — and not stuck behind a tall man in a top hat. You can start a sentence off with this word to convey the idea of "in a perfect world." For example, you might say, "Ideally, I'd be able to sleep in until at least ten every morning." The other way to use it is as a synonym for "perfectly," as in "My cat and I are ideally suited for each other" or "The vanilla ice cream complemented my apple pie."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ideally

"I acknowledge the fact that ideally Liverpool would love to have a team full of Scousers," says Inglethorpe.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

Bodrum is perhaps best appreciated from the water, ideally on board a gulet, a wooden sailing vessel common in southwest Turkey.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

Hospitality has always had scaffolding beneath it; ideally, the guest simply doesn’t spend much time looking at it.

From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2026

That makes perfect sense, and it connects with a favorite exercise of mine: Every week — ideally, every day — I listen to a full album from beginning to end.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026

And that leads to another way to escape the curse of knowledge: show a draft to yourself, ideally after enough time has passed that the text is no longer familiar.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

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Related Words

• appealingly
• attractively
• charmingly
• delightfully
• elegantly
• exquisitely
• gorgeously
• gracefully
• handsomely
• magnificently
• seductively
• splendidly
• sublimely
• superbly
• tastefully
• wonderfully

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