necessarily

American  

[nes-uh-sair-uh-lee, -ser-] / ˌnɛs əˈsɛər ə li, -ˈsɛr- /

adverb

1. by or of necessity; as a matter of compulsion or requirement.

   You don't necessarily have to attend.

2. as a necessary, logical, or inevitable result.

   That conclusion doesn't necessarily follow.

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necessarily British  

/ ˌnɛsɪˈsɛrɪlɪ, ˈnɛsɪsərɪlɪ /

adverb

1. as an inevitable or natural consequence

   girls do not necessarily like dolls

2. as a certainty

   he won't necessarily come

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Etymology

Origin of necessarily

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; necessary, -ly

Example Sentences

“It isn’t necessarily that your salary has decreased. It may not have. But you might hear others around you say that theirs has, which creates a sense of urgency,” he said.

From The Wall Street Journal

"A lot of people don't necessarily go to a GP, so you don't get perfect data," she said.

From BBC

To be clear, home buyers don’t necessarily need to go with the mortgage lender that their agent suggests.

From MarketWatch

The cash tax payment doesn’t necessarily translate directly to a company’s tax rate.

From The Wall Street Journal

He’s not necessarily strict, but he doesn’t tolerate “wasted time,” as he puts it.

From Literature

Related Words

• automatically
• naturally
• no doubt
• undoubtedly
• unquestionably