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purposely

purposely

72 3.5
To do something on purpose
  • adverb
  • /ˈpɜr.pəs.li/
translation icon : a propósito
  • She purposely left her phone at home to avoid distractions during the meeting.
  • purposely selected
  • purposely avoided
  • purposely introduced

And so I, I purposely kept, kept away from them.

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Examples

  • And the rich purposely do things that limit their taxes.

  • I purposely did not listen.

  • And so I, I purposely kept, kept away from them.

  • So it was purposely not well planned.

  • I know a lot of people and they will very purposely go in, purchase a business.

  • But she purposely turns it on.

  • So I purposely order the pizza, like, three minutes before midnight.

  • Artists throughout history have played a role in purposely challenging norms.

  • People sense they're being kept in the dark purposely.

  • Robert steps closer to her, purposely reaching across her body for a napkin.

    Fiction book (1995)

Synonyms

deliberately
vspurposely
320 3.7

To do something on purpose and with care

is similar but does not stress careful thought beforehand
on purpose
vspurposely
254 1.6

By choice, not by accident

expresses the same deliberate choice without conversational phrasing
intentionally
vspurposely
155 3.1

In a way that someone does something on purpose, not by accident

is the same idea but neutral about tone or planning
consciously
vspurposely
89 3.7

On purpose while fully aware of what you are doing

is intentional but may not emphasize conscious awareness
knowingly
vspurposely
76 3.9

In a way that shows you know and do it on purpose

is intentional but may not stress knowledge of specific facts
by choice
vspurposely
37 3.1

Someone does this because they decide to, not because they must

focuses on deliberate action rather than the actor's freedom of choice
purposefully
vspurposely
31 3.9

To act in a determined way to reach a clear goal

is more general, not necessarily showing strong determination
by design
vspurposely
26 4.0

On purpose as part of a plan

is intentional but may not stress prior formal planning
pointedly
vspurposely
21 5.5

In a way that shows something clearly on purpose

is deliberate but usually not aimed at making something obvious
wittingly
vspurposely
4 7.5

In a way that shows you know what you are doing

is similar but less focused on legal or culpable awareness
advisedly
vspurposely
  • Formal
3 7.4

In a careful way after thinking about what might happen

is intentional but may not imply prior careful consideration
mindfully
vspurposely
2 3.9

Carefully and with full attention to what you do

is deliberate but does not always stress careful attention
calculatedly
vspurposely
1 6.8

In a planned, careful way to get a particular result

is deliberate but can be less thoroughly planned
premeditatedly
vspurposely
1 8.1

In a planned way before doing something

is intentional but does not always imply advance planning
designedly
vspurposely
  • Formal
1 7.7

On purpose to say or do something

is deliberate but does not necessarily imply planned design
purposively
vspurposely
6.5

In a way done on purpose

covers intentional action more broadly without stressing a single goal
advertently
vspurposely
  • Formal
8.2

Carefully and on purpose

shares deliberateness but is less common in everyday language

Antonyms

354 1.4

In a way that is not planned and happens by mistake

How Purposeful

deliberately
320 3.7
purposely
72 3.5
accidentally
354 1.4

Surface Forms

purposely positive

Morphology

purposely = purpose (transparent) = purpose + ly

Formed directly from the noun 'purpose' with the productive adverbial suffix '-ly', yielding the meaning 'with intention' which is directly predictable.

Etymology

Purposely comes from purpose, which means 'an aim' or 'a reason', and the ending -ly that makes it describe how something is done. So, to do something purposely is to do it with a clear aim or plan, in other words 'on purpose'.