Purely

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /ˈpjɔːli/, /ˈpjÊŠÉ™li/

Origin

From pure + -ly.

Full definition of purely

Adverb

1. (now US regional) Wholly; really, completely. from 14th c.
• 1962, Warren Miller, Flush Times:I am fascinated by the entire scene, I purely am.
2. Solely; exclusively; merely, simply. from 14th c.
• 2005, Owen Bowcott, The Guardian, 8 Apr 2005:The IRA should "lead by example" and "unilaterally" abandon paramilitary violence and adopt a purely political strategy, a leading Sinn Féin MP urged yesterday.
• 2007, ‘Helen Brooks’, His Christmas Bride:"But this meal tonight is not a date, not in the traditional sense. It's purely platonic, I assure you."
3. Chastely, innocently; in a sinless manner, without fault. from 15th c.
• 1623, William Shakespeare, Troilus and Cressida, First Folio, IV.7:faith and troth,
  Strain'd purely from all hollow bias drawing:
  Bids thee with most diuine integritie,
  From heart of very heart, great Hector welcome.
4. (now rare) Without physical adulterants; refinedly, with no admixture. from 16th c.
• 1823, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Table Talk:By some means or other the water flows purely, and separated from the filth, in a deeper and narrower course on one side of the rock, and the refuse of the dirt and troubled water goes off on the other in a broader current ....