Word.ws English Dictionary

How to use exactly in a sentence

40 example sentences · adverb, interjection

Exactly means without approximation; precisely. Example: “Measure exactly so we can be sure it is right.”

Examples of exactly by meaning

adverbWithout approximation; precisely.

  • Measure exactly so we can be sure it is right.
  • The edge is not exactly straight.
  • He divided the coins exactly in half.

adverbPrecisely, used to provide emphasis.

  • He did it that way exactly to prove the point.

interjectionSignifies agreement or recognition.

  • So you're saying that we have only three days left? — Yes, exactly!

More sentences with exactly

  • You have nothing to say about it. I'll do exactly as I see fit.From the entry fit
  • I’ve worked here for exactly four years, one month and 10 days.From the entry have
  • His experience showed, because he knew exactly what to do when the emergency happened.From the entry show
  • Ma’am, you are exactly the professional we want for this job.From the entry want
  • There has been considerable debate concerning exactly how to format these articles.From the entry debate
  • If you use the same seed you will get exactly the same pattern of numbers.From the entry seed
  • David equaled the water levels of the bottles, so they now both contain exactly 1 liter.From the entry equal
  • That vase isn't exactly central. Could you move it over a couple of inches?From the entry over
  • We've lost quite a few; I don't know exactly how many.From the entry how many
  • We have surveyor's stakes at all four corners of this field, to mark exactly its borders.From the entry stake
  • I don't exactly know how to fix this lawnmower; I'm really just fiddling.From the entry fiddle
  • I have copied his speech verbatim, so this is exactly what he said, word for word.From the entry verbatim
  • Your answer isn't exactly right, but it's a very close miss.From the entry miss
  • Well done everyone, the tree fell exactly where we planned. That was textbook.From the entry textbook
  • She retired at some point in her sixties, I don't recall exactly when.From the entry sixties
  • I'm not exactly in love with the idea of having to start again from scratch.From the entry in love
  • A triangle is a specialization of a polygon to one with exactly three sides.From the entry specialization
  • A geographical mile is exactly equal to one minute of arc along the Earth's equator.From the entry minute of arc
  • The one-metre-long model of the Bismarck was built exactly to scale, with moving turrets.From the entry to scale
  • Each handcrafted sculpture is a unique work of art: no two are exactly the same.From the entry handcrafted
  • I have so many kids, I can't be sure exactly what the number is.From the entry so many
  • It took them hours to root out exactly where the water was coming in.From the entry root out
  • It's all been smooth sailing; everything has gone exactly according to plan.From the entry smooth sailing
  • He remained hedgy until he knew exactly what was being asked of him.From the entry hedgy
  • Post towns rarely correspond exactly to administrative boundaries and their associated physical features.From the entry post town
  • I said it exactly how he said it.From the entry how
  • They drilled daily to learn the routine exactly.From the entry drill
  • The earthquake's focus was at exactly 37 degrees north, 18 degrees south, seventy five meters below the ground.From the entry focus
  • I like to froth my coffee for ten seconds exactly.From the entry froth
  • You couldn't call it a feud exactly, but there had always been a chill between Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods.From the entry feud
  • The liftoff will occur in exactly twelve seconds.From the entry occur
  • A change of clime was exactly what the family needed.From the entry clime
  • The train got away exactly on time.From the entry get away
  • Spanish orthography is highly phonemic: you can tell exactly how the words sound just by looking at how they are spelled.From the entry phonemic
  • I'm not exactly Jewish; more like Jew-ish.From the entry Jew-ish

Meaning of exactly

  1. adverb Without approximation; precisely.
  2. adverb Precisely, used to provide emphasis.
  3. interjection Signifies agreement or recognition.

Full definition of exactly

Questions about exactly in a sentence

How do you use exactly in a sentence?
Exactly is used as an adverb and interjection. For example: “Measure exactly so we can be sure it is right.”
What is a short sentence with exactly?
“The edge is not exactly straight.”
What does exactly mean?
Exactly means without approximation; precisely.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: exactly (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this page: “How to use exactly in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/exactly. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.