absolutely
adverb
Simple meaning
As an intensive: extremely, very.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
absuhlootleeSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
æbsəˈlutli
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adverb
In an absolute or unconditional manner; utterly, positively, wholly.
As an intensive: extremely, very, indeed.
Independently; viewed without relation to other things or factors.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: In an absolute or unconditional manner; utterly, positively, wholly.
'Absolutely' is a very common way to agree strongly or emphasize something. It's more emphatic and enthusiastic than 'yes' or 'certainly,' and can also mean 'completely' or 'totally.'
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Moderate
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where you'll really hear it
Casual conversation
“Do you want to come? Absolutely, I wouldn't miss it!”
Formal agreement
“We absolutely agree with your assessment of the situation.”
Expressing emphasis
“That movie was absolutely fantastic; everyone should see it.”
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use absolutely
- “An absolutely magnificent painting.”adverb
- “We are absolutely opposed to the idea.”adverb
Share your sentence
Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
Perfect or complete or pure.
Use This Word
See how this word sounds in a real sentence.
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Use it yourself
Knowing “absolutely” starts when you use it. Pick a next step, all free.
Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.