partially

[pahr-shuh-lee]

adverb

1. to some degree or in some way or aspect, but not fully or totally; incompletely.

   Season three of the sci-fi series would have taken place either partially or completely on Mars.

2. in a way that is biased or prejudiced in favor of one group, side, person, etc., over another.

   He did not judge partially, he said, but claimed to mete out justice equally to rich and poor alike.

Other Word Forms

• nonpartially adverb
• overpartially adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of partially¹

partial ( def. ) + -ly

Example Sentences

In South Carolina, public utility Santee Cooper is in talks to sell its partially built AP1000s to Brookfield, which could complete them to power AI data centers.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Schools in at least nine of Nigeria's 36 states are either fully or partially closed for fear of further abductions.

Read more on Barron's

This helps explain why U.S. corporate profit margins have risen in the wake of higher trade tariffs, which are partially being absorbed by companies rather than passed on to consumers as higher prices.

Read more on MarketWatch

Months later, the entire family attended the Cannes Film Festival, where “Cake” took the Audience Award in the Director’s Fortnight sidebar, partially thanks to her captivating performance.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

When she got pregnant in 2021, her heart was already weakened by Graves’ disease and she was still recovering from a rare neurological illness that had left her partially paralyzed.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• moderately 
• partly 
• somewhat