nearly
UK/ˈnɪəli/
More pronunciations (1)Fewer pronunciations
British/ˈnɪːlɪj/
nearly adverb: in close approximation; almost, virtually.
Adverb
nearly (comparative nearlier or more nearly, superlative nearliest or most nearly)
- In close approximation; almost, virtually.
- He left a nearly full beer on the bar.
- I nearly didn't go to work yesterday.
- Synonyms:
- environ
- With great scrutiny; carefully.
- And whosoever hath traced mee and nearely [translating de pres] looked into my humours, Ile loose a good wager if hee confesse not that there is no rule in their schoole, could, a midde such crooked pathes and divers windings, square and report this naturall motion, and maintaine an apparance of...1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 1, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book III, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC
- With close relation; intimately.
- Let that which he learns next be nearly conjoined with what he knows already.a. 1705, John Locke, “Of the Conduct of the Understanding”, in Posthumous Works of Mr. John Locke: […], London: […] A[wnsham] and J[ohn] Churchill, […], published 1706, →OCLC
- She could have joined most comfortably in all their supposings, and suspicions, and doubts, and prognostications, but the honour of the family was too nearly concerned to allow free reins to her tongue.1837, The Dublin University Magazine
- Closely, in close proximity.
- I doubt some danger do's approach you neerely.c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount...
- Stingily.
nearly meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Urdu and Bengali
nearly in Hindi
- almost, but not quite
- लगभग lagbhag
nearly in Tamil
- ஏறத்தாழ, கிட்டத்தட்ட
nearly in Urdu
- nearly
- قریب qarīb, قریب قریب qarīb-qarīb
nearly in Bengali
- almost, but not quite
- নাগাদ nagad
More languagesFewer languages
- nearly in Malayalam
- മിക്കവാറും, ഏകദേശം
- nearly in Kannada
- ಹತ್ತಿರದಲ್ಲಿ, ನಿಕಟವಾಗಿ, ಹತ್ತಿರಹತ್ತಿರ, ಸುಮಾರು
- nearly in Punjabi
- ਕਰੀਬ karīb
- nearly in Odia
- ପ୍ରାୟ prāya
- nearly in Sanskrit
- नोद् nod
- nearly in Arabic
- تَقْرِيبًا taqrīban
- nearly in Persian
- تقریباً taqriban
- nearly in Thai
- เกือบจะ gèuap jà
- nearly in Vietnamese
- gần, gần như
Examples of nearly in a sentence
- He was (so/very) nearly over the worst part of his college degree.
- And indeed she had the narrow eyes and the high cheekbone of that creature, and as nearly the sinuosity as is compatible with human symmetry.1921, Ben Travers, chapter 1, in A Cuckoo in the Nest, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company, published 1925, →OCLC:
- 'Since Heidi's been here, delightful things have happened nearly every day.'1956 [1880], Johanna Spyri, Heidi, translation of original by Eileen Hall, page 97:
- In the past two years, NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope has located nearly 3,000 exoplanet candidates ranging from sub-Earth-sized minions to gas giants that dwarf our own Jupiter.2013 May-June, Kevin Heng, “Why Does Nature Form Exoplanets Easily?”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3, archived from the...
- [H]e was also accounted a man of wealth, and was nearly related to a high chief.1847 March 30, Herman Melville, Omoo: A Narrative of Adventures in the South Seas; […], London: John Murray, […], →OCLC:
Synonyms of nearly
Forms of nearly
| comparative | nearlier |
|---|---|
| comparative | more nearly |
| superlative | nearliest |
| superlative | most nearly |
| alternative form | nerely |
| alternative form | nerly |
| alternative form | neerely |
| alternative form | nearely |
Origin of nearly
From near + -ly. Cognate with Scots nerelie, neirlie (“nearly”). Compare also English nearling, nearlings.
Words formed from nearly
Phrases with nearly
Words that rhyme with nearly
Questions about nearly
- What does nearly mean?
- Nearly means in close approximation; almost, virtually.
- What is nearly in Hindi?
- Nearly in Hindi is लगभग (lagbhag). See Nearly meaning in Hindi.
- How do you use nearly in a sentence?
- He was (so/very) nearly over the worst part of his college degree.
- What part of speech is nearly?
- Nearly is an adverb.
- How do you pronounce nearly?
- Nearly is pronounced /ˈnɪəli/ (UK).
Words near nearly in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: nearly (page history and authors); nearly (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); قریب (Urdu) (page history and authors); nearly (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); nearly (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors); ਕਰੀਬ (Punjabi) (page history and authors); ପ୍ରାୟ (Odia) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-nearly.ogg.
Cite this entry: “nearly.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/nearly. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.