truly

adverb

tru·​ly ˈtrü-lē How to pronounce truly (audio)
1
: in all sincerity : sincerely
often used with yours as a complimentary close
2
: in agreement with fact : truthfully
3
a
: indeed
often used as an intensive
truly, she is fair
or interjectionally to express astonishment or doubt
b
: without feigning, falsity, or inaccuracy in truth or fact
4
: with exactness of construction or operation
5
: in a proper or suitable manner

Examples of truly in a Sentence

These truly dark clusters, if they are real, would betray the universe's dirty secret: Big piles of mass don't necessarily come with lights attached. Robert Irion, Science, 20 June 2003
By the time Columbus arrived, truly large empires existed only in Mexico. Tim Flannery, New York Review of Books, 12 June 2003
The streets and sidewalks of Bedley Run truly seemed as much mine as any person's, their almost affirming solidity underfoot, bouncing me along on my diurnal way. Chang-rae Lee, A Gesture Life, 1999
I truly believe they can do it. He truly enjoyed the concert. This is truly a different situation. A country is not truly democratic until all of its citizens can vote freely. Is this poll truly representative of the voters' intentions?
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The struggles of United and Spurs have been pored over for months, but West Ham’s truly dreadful campaign has gone under the radar. Tim Spiers, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2025 Until this is clarified − and truly clarified, not subject to the ever-changing whims of one man − all Americans will be held in limbo, and this will crush economic growth. Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 21 Apr. 2025 That work—in humans, animals, and machine-learning models—had already revealed a pathway to a truly protective vaccine against T.B., which was previously believed impossible. Atul Gawande, New Yorker, 21 Apr. 2025 These Are the Early Symptoms My Doctors Missed’ By Cheyenne Buckingham 13 Ways to Turn a Plate of Pasta Into a High-Protein Dinner By Audrey Bruno Not to mention, zeroing in on the exchange verbatim is more likely to lead to overanalyzing every word than truly gaining clarity. Jenna Ryu, SELF, 21 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for truly

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3b

Time Traveler
The first known use of truly was in the 13th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Truly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/truly. Accessed 25 Apr. 2025.

Kids Definition

truly

adverb
tru·​ly ˈtrü-lē How to pronounce truly (audio)
: in a true manner

More from Merriam-Webster on truly

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!