utterly

adverb

ut·​ter·​ly ˈə-tər-lē 

: to an absolute or extreme degree : to the full extent : in an utter manner : absolutely, entirely, totally

Just when you're expecting to hear something trite or ordinary, Rich invents a tasty, utterly charming piece of ear candy.

—Carol Cooper

Whatever this stuff is, it comprises as much as 90% of the mass of the universe. It is also utterly invisible.

—M. Mitchell Waldrop

… a fascinating read, despite the fact that its unique tone is utterly lost in translation.

—Ian Buruma

Cut off utterly from her past, but socially unacceptable in this new world, Irene chooses the same refuge that's worked for her as a child: poetry.

—Sue Miller

Synonyms

• all
• all of
• all over
• altogether
• clean
• completely
• dead
• enough
• entire
• entirely
• even
• exactly
• fast
• flat
• full
• fully
• heartily
• out
• perfectly
• plumb [chiefly dialect]
• quite
• soundly
• thoroughly
• through and through
• totally
• well
• wholly
• wide

Examples of utterly in a Sentence

we are in fact utterly out of ideas

was utterly overwhelmed by the demands on her time

Recent Examples on the Web

Their bond begins to fray, and betrayal—once utterly unthinkable—now becomes all too possible. Sacker Entertainment Law is handling business affairs, production legal and finance legal for Paper Tiger. —Justin Kroll, Deadline, 9 May 2025

After playing just one division foe over the first six weeks of the season — a three-game sweep of the utterly helpless Colorado Rockies last month — the Dodgers are finally getting into the meat of their division schedule. —Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 9 May 2025

How anyone thought that this was the most engaging use of a seemingly competent third-person flight-combat system is utterly baffling. —ArsTechnica, 9 May 2025

But, this being 2025, the guard of honour discourse was utterly unrelenting, akin to a relatively minor royal wedding. —Tim Spiers, New York Times, 7 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above