nominally
Americanadverb
Etymology
Origin of nominally
Explanation
Something nominally true is true in name only. This refers to things that are only titles or formalities. It’s the opposite of "really." Words with the root nom relate to names, and nominally refers to situations where someone has a name or title that doesn't carry a lot of weight. Former Presidents are still called Mr. President, but they only nominally hold that title; they aren't really acting presidents anymore. A separated couple might be nominally married, even though they never see each other. Nominally is like “not really.”
Vocabulary lists containing nominally
"What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?" by Frederick Douglass
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Jane Eyre
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Life of Pi
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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.
The district and county councils nominally manage education, road paving, trash collection and a bevy of social services including low-income housing.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026
Ranging from complete cartoons to more or less fully realized humans, they don’t all fit together perfectly, and so nominally emotional moments don’t necessarily register as such.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026
Yeah, the religious figure is nominally at the top of everything and, in fact, actually at the bottom of everything.
From Slate • Mar. 11, 2026
It’s nominally about former Defense Secretary Robert McNamara and the Vietnam War, but Rhodes clearly intends the contemporary resonance:
From Salon • Feb. 28, 2026
The data show that car seats are, at best, nominally helpful.
From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt
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.
