on purpose
Idioms-
Deliberately, intentionally, as in He left the photo out of the story on purpose . Shakespeare's use of this idiom was among the earliest; it appears in The Comedy of Errors (4:3): “On purpose shut the doors against his way.”
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accidentally on purpose . Seemingly accidentally but actually deliberately, as in She stepped on his foot accidentally on purpose . This generally jocular phrase was first recorded in 1862.
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.
Accidentally on purpose, he guides the Cat to the plot’s MacGuffin—a stopwatch that turns back time called the Go-Backer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2026
"I will never do that and you can ask her, she was on the joke with me. She did Soc on purpose, and I said Soc, so please stop inventing stories."
From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026
The book ends with a trial to determine whether she did so on purpose.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
Rose lives in Tecopa, population 120, among people who’ve chosen the isolation, quietude, natural beauty and brutal conditions on purpose.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
Were they hidden back there by accident or on purpose?
From "Root Magic" by Eden Royce
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
