wholly

adverb

whol·​ly ˈhō(l)-lē 

1

: to the full or entire extent : completely

a wholly owned subsidiary

2

: to the exclusion of other things : solely

a book dealing wholly with herbs

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
• utterly
• well
• wide

Examples of wholly in a Sentence

She is wholly devoted to her children.

An infant is wholly dependent on its mother.

The claim is wholly without merit.

Recent Examples on the Web

Often lauded as one of the finest filmmakers of his generation, Lynch coined a distinctive and wholly unique style of storytelling, which often involved all-American normality jarring with warped scenes of unexpected violence. —Charlotte Owen, Vogue, 16 Jan. 2025

Not the best time for a movie on a wholly different scourge. —Jocelyn Noveck, Los Angeles Times, 15 Jan. 2025

Yet, congressional chieftains like Speaker of the House Joseph G. Cannon and Senator Nelson Aldrich saw reorganizing the executive branch as wholly different. —Bruce W. Dearstyne / Made By History, TIME, 13 Jan. 2025

Humanity is now rapidly integrating a wholly different kind of mistake-maker into society: AI. —Bruce Schneier, IEEE Spectrum, 11 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English hoolly, from hool whole

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

wholly

adverb

whol·​ly ˈhōl-(l)ē 

1

: to the full or entire extent : completely

a wholly different view

2

: to the exclusion of other things : solely

a book devoted wholly to sports cars