purposely
gb/pˈɚpəsli/ us/pˈɚpəsli/
B2
English
~ 8500
Senses
0 senses
adverb
B2
property
1
deliberately, not by accident
In a planned way, not by accident.
Usage pattern:
to do [something] purposely
Common mistake:
Learners often confuse "purposely" with "purposefully." "Purposely" means "on purpose" or "intentionally" (He purposely broke the window = He did it on purpose). "Purposefully" usually means "in a determined or focused way" (She walked purposefully to the door = She walked in a strong, decided way). Learners also sometimes say *"by purpose"* instead of the correct phrase "on purpose."
Synonyms
intentionally (Very close in meaning; the most common neutral alternative in both speech and writing.)
|
deliberately (Emphasizes careful thought or planning a bit more than "purposely.")
|
on purpose (Common, informal everyday phrase; sounds more conversational than "purposely.")
Antonyms
accidentally (Describes something happening by chance, without planning, which is the opposite of doing it purposely.)
|
unintentionally (Stresses that there was no plan or wish to cause the result, opposite of an action done with purpose.)
Collocations
purposely ignore
|purposely avoid
|purposely break
|purposely mislead
|purposely damage
|do it purposely
Themes
daily life
|behavior
|thinking
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- He purposely ignored my emails for a week.
- The company was fined for purposely misleading customers about the product’s safety.
- She purposely arrived late to make a point.
- I didn’t bump into you purposely; someone pushed me.
- The witness had purposely left out important details from his story.
Learner examples
- He spoke slowly and purposely so everyone could understand.
- She purposely did not answer the question.
- They purposely broke the rule to see what would happen.
- I did not do it purposely; it was a mistake.
- The boy purposely hit the ball into the window.
Grammar
Dictionary form
purposely
IPA
GB/pˈɚpəsli/
US/pˈɚpəsli/
Syllables & stress
pur - posely (2 syllables)
Stress on 1st syllable (pur)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: purposely
- Plural: purposelies
Word family
Forms
purposelies
noun
Core family
Related words
multipurpose
adjective
repurpose
verb
Negative and opposite forms
purposeless
adjective
purposelessly
adverb
Advanced or less common
purposive
adjective
purposively
adverb
Expressions
No expressions linked to this entry yet.