inevitably

American  

[in-ev-i-tuh-blee] / ɪnˈɛv ɪ tə bli /

adverb

1. in a way that cannot be avoided or escaped; as will certainly or necessarily happen.

   All we parents can do is our best, and when we inevitably screw up, we know that tomorrow's another day.

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Other Word Forms

• quasi-inevitably
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of inevitably

inevitab(le) ( def. ) + -ly

Explanation

If something is totally unavoidable, it is inevitably going to happen. Inevitably, the sun will come up tomorrow. The adverb inevitably comes from the negative of the French word for "avoid" or "shun." There are things you can put off for a while, but inevitably you're going to have to deal with them at some point, like telling your family that you crashed the car. No matter how free-spirited you imagine yourself, unless you are independently wealthy, you will inevitably have to settle down and get some sort of job, like writing and editing word definitions.

Example Sentences

Eyeballs are inevitably trained on the men's football World Cup, particularly with England still in the competition, while the women's T20 cricket World Cup and British Grand Prix are also jostling for the limelight.

From BBC • Jun. 28, 2026

Second, when you live inside something—a country, a way of life—you inevitably stop seeing it.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 25, 2026

There will inevitably be some wear and tear if you are having strangers in your house.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 22, 2026

Regulators expect some will inevitably get sick, and so they focus on ensuring consumers, at the very least, are aware of the risk.

From Salon • Jun. 22, 2026

We tend to assume that useful technologies, once acquired, inevitably persist until superseded by better ones.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

Related Words

• necessarily
• surely