routinely
Americanadverb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of routinely
Explanation
When you do something routinely, you do it often and regularly. Many people routinely brush their teeth before they go to bed and again when they wake up in the morning. Something that's become a habit or an often repeated series of actions is done routinely. Your actual daily routine is one example of this — you might routinely eat cereal for breakfast, or routinely feed your cat at 5:00, for example. You can also say that a movie critic who always seems to find some fault with a film routinely trashes all your favorite movies. The French root is routine, "usual course of action," from route, "way or path."
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 EPA offices routinely relied on them to set the amount of a particular chemical that industrial facilities are allowed to emit.
From Salon • May 5, 2026
He said he "did not believe that he had done anything wrong" as officers "routinely took photos of evidence on their personal mobile phones".
From BBC • May 3, 2026
It is the most common method for abortion care in the United States and is also routinely used for managing early miscarriage.
From Barron's • May 1, 2026
Fund managers interviewed in the media routinely cite strong earnings growth as a reason to keep buying stocks, even when valuations look stretched.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 30, 2026
If, in other words, the matter were treated routinely and with a minimum of fuss, it would quickly evaporate.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
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.
