pretty much

Idioms  

1. Almost, nearly, approximately, as in Our homework was pretty much finished. This adverbial usage differs from the use of pretty for “considerable” (as in pretty penny). [c. 1800]

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Example Sentences

"Production of ozone-depleting substances has pretty much ceased around the world except for this one use, which is when you have a chemical you convert into something else."

From Science Daily • Apr. 16, 2026

And all else is pretty much equal over such a short span: Cold fusion wasn’t perfected, cancer wasn’t cured and the economy didn’t leap into a faster gear.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

Rosenberg also cites the rally in riskier assets as a sign the market thinks the war is pretty much over.

From Barron's • Apr. 15, 2026

We may not be able to teleport, either physically or via hologram, but we can Zoom or video chat with pretty much anyone anywhere.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026

It was pretty much the opposite of being a Spare.

From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega

Related Words

• a little
• considerably
• fairly
• kind of
• moderately
• quite
• rather
• reasonably
• somewhat
• very