essentially
adverb
es·sen·tial·ly
i-ˈsen(t)-shə-lē 
-ˈsench-lē
: in essence : fundamentally
—used to identify or stress the basic or essential character or nature of a person or thing or to say that a description is basically true or accurate
He's essentially a good man.
… painting, essentially a two-dimensional art …—
Herbert Read
Herbert ReadThe fact that so many bloggers are essentially anonymous allows them to spew rancor, rumor, lies, and obscenities.—Gil Troy
Gil TroyAphids feed on the sugary phloem of plants. Essentially they steal the product of photosynthesis.—Caleb Rounds
Caleb RoundsExamples of essentially in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Back in the outside world, Devon (Jen Tullock) questions why Ricken (Michael Chernus) is essentially writing Lumon propaganda, and Outie Irving formally connects with Outie Burt (Christopher Walken).
—Matt Minton, Variety, 14 Feb. 2025
Hopefully Jenn realizes that besides the UCLA road game last season which is essentially a home game that the team went 0-4 in road games.
—Antonio Morales, The Athletic, 14 Feb. 2025
Why the scrappy indie bet on Bong Joon Ho
Feb. 10, 2020
After essentially sticking to the same packaging for its first four years, Neon reimagined the box in 2021, creating specific design elements for individual movies in that year’s slate.
—Tim Grierson, Los Angeles Times, 13 Feb. 2025
Eventually, it was discovered that Larson had memorized the patterns in the game board, essentially doing his own version of counting cards to ensure his victory.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 13 Feb. 2025
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Matt Minton, Variety, 14 Feb. 2025
Hopefully Jenn realizes that besides the UCLA road game last season which is essentially a home game that the team went 0-4 in road games.
—Antonio Morales, The Athletic, 14 Feb. 2025
Why the scrappy indie bet on Bong Joon Ho
Feb. 10, 2020
After essentially sticking to the same packaging for its first four years, Neon reimagined the box in 2021, creating specific design elements for individual movies in that year’s slate.
—Tim Grierson, Los Angeles Times, 13 Feb. 2025
Eventually, it was discovered that Larson had memorized the patterns in the game board, essentially doing his own version of counting cards to ensure his victory.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 13 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for essentially
Dictionary Entries Near essentially
Cite this Entry
“Essentially.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/essentially. Accessed 22 Feb. 2025.
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