purely

[ pyoor-lee ]

adverb

1. in a pure manner; without admixture.
2. merely; only; solely:

   purely accidental.

3. entirely; completely.
4. innocently, virtuously, or chastely.

ˈpurely

/ ˈpjʊəlɪ /

adverb

1. in a pure manner
2. entirely

   purely by chance

3. in a chaste or innocent manner

Word History and Origins

Origin of purely¹

First recorded in 1250–1300, purely is from the Middle English word purliche; pure, -ly

Example Sentences

It also provides cover to House GOP members to say they are voting to support Greene purely to keep Democrats from abusing their power as the majority.

From Vox

When you think of content as being purely acquisitional, you become blinded by the drug that is acquisition.

From Search Engine Watch

This isn’t to say the US would use AI for purely ethical purposes.

From Singularity Hub 

Sure, the best conferences still win on great speakers and actionable takeaways, but following an in-person playbook for online events falls short of leveraging what a purely digital medium offers.

From Search Engine Land

The Tesla CEO agreed to receive no salary or bonuses in exchange for a purely performance-based compensation plan.

From Quartz

Indeed, as an almost purely advisory firm, Lazard is (appropriately) barely affected by the Dodd-Frank reforms.

From The Daily Beast

Traditionally, popular history is almost purely driven by narrative.

From The Daily Beast

The Samaritan guidelines are written around the assumption that suicide is a purely irrational act, an act spurred by illness.

From The Daily Beast

Purely by chance, Anna Coren had landed in Sydney just as the chocolate shop siege began.

From The Daily Beast

For starters, from a purely practical, all-hands-on-deck position, I say if you can do the job, you should keep the job.

From The Daily Beast

Here, as in so many of these childish admirations, we have to do not with a purely æsthetic perception.

From Project Gutenberg

In the preceding chapter an examination has been made of the purely mechanical side of the era of machine production.

From Project Gutenberg

True, she had taken a lively interest in all her brother's curates, but it was always a professional interest and purely Platonic.

From Project Gutenberg

His ambition is a purely selfish one, while mine is distinctly benevolent.

From Project Gutenberg

Our existing poverty is purely a problem in the direction and distribution of human effort.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• altogether
• completely
• entirely
• essentially
• exactly
• exclusively
• merely
• plainly
• quite
• solely
• totally
• utterly
• wholly