jointly
Americanadverb
Other Word Forms
- quasi-jointly adverb
Etymology
Origin of jointly
Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; see origin at joint, -ly
Explanation
When more than one person or group works on something together, they do it jointly. A jointly researched and written term paper should have both the authors' names on the first page. If you and your best friend buy a car together, you do it jointly, and if your whole family chips in to fund your cousin's trip to India, you contribute jointly. You might hear that your favorite radio program is jointly supported by a few local businesses, or read in a poetry magazine that it's jointly edited by two people. Earlier, the preferred word was joinly, though jointly comes from joint and its sense of connection.
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.
It’s good we’ve gotten to a place where the U.S. and Iran can jointly allow some commercial ships with essential goods to travel the Strait of Hormuz.
From Slate • Apr. 17, 2026
He also insisted that the U.S. and Iran might work jointly to oversee ship traffic through the strait.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 9, 2026
The chip maker announced Tuesday that it would partner with Elon Musk on his Terafab semiconductor plant, jointly developed by Tesla, xAI, and SpaceX.
From Barron's • Apr. 7, 2026
It had pushed for a revision in favour of the vice-president being jointly elected with the president, rather than appointed.
From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026
Meanwhile, teams of Sparra warriors were jointly lifting struggling rats and flying high to drop them into the middle of the Abbey pond.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
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.
