purposely

purposely
purposely, purposefully
Purposely is the older word (15c) and means ‘on purpose, intentionally’

• (We've purposely changed our programmes on Tuesday to fit in with the Royal timetable —BBC Press Release, 2002 [OEC])

whereas the more recent word purposefully (19c) corresponds to the adjective purposeful and means ‘with a strong purpose, resolutely’:

• He threw down a handful of sovereigns without even looking at Sam, then strode purposefully after the Squire —S. Langley, 2006.

A third word, purposively (20c), means ‘for a particular purpose’, and is more usual in technical contexts:

• Socialism…would have to be built by active human beings working purposively and creatively —J. Dignan et al., 1992.

Occasionally purposively is used when purposefully is probably meant:

• ‘Gerrart-of-it!’ said the larger of the two, moving purposively towards me —Will Self, 1993.


Modern English usage. 2014.

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Synonyms:

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Purposely — Pur pose*ly, adv. With purpose or design; intentionally; with predetermination; designedly. [1913 Webster] In composing this discourse, I purposely declined all offensive and displeasing truths. Atterbury. [1913 Webster] So much they scorn the… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • purposely — pur·pose·ly adv: with a deliberate, conscious, or express purpose: intentionally Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996. purposely …   Law dictionary

  • purposely — late 15c., from PURPOSE (Cf. purpose) + LY (Cf. ly) (2) …   Etymology dictionary

  • purposely — [adv] intentionally advisedly, by design, calculatedly, consciously, deliberately, designedly, explicitly, expressly, knowingly, on purpose, prepensely, purposedly, willfully, with intent; concepts 529,544 Ant. impulsively, spontaneously,… …   New thesaurus

  • purposely — ► ADVERB ▪ deliberately; on purpose …   English terms dictionary

  • purposely — [pʉr′pəs lē] adv. with a definite purpose; intentionally; deliberately …   English World dictionary

  • purposely — /perr peuhs lee/, adv. 1. intentionally; deliberately: He tripped me purposely. 2. with the particular purpose specified; expressly: I wore that suit purposely to make a good impression. [1485 95; PURPOSE + LY] * * * …   Universalium

  • purposely — [[t]pɜ͟ː(r)pəsli[/t]] ADV: usu ADV with v, also ADV adj If you do something purposely, you do it intentionally. [FORMAL] They are purposely withholding information. Syn: intentionally …   English dictionary

  • purposely — Intentionally; designedly; consciously; knowingly. Act is done purposely if it is willed, is product of conscious design, intent or plan that it be done, and is done with awareness of probable consequences. Home v. State, Ind., 445 N.E.2d 976,… …   Black's law dictionary

  • purposely — See purposely, purposefully …   Dictionary of problem words and expressions

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