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minimally

adverb

Simple meaning

To the least extent.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

minuhmuhlee

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US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈmɪnəməli

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.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

adverb

  1. In a minimal way; to the least extent.

  2. To a minimal degree

    “The cells minimally responsive to lines in this orientation will not fire.”

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
B2 · Upper Intermediate (estimated)
Frequency
Uncommon
Typical Use
Neutral / general English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

This meaning: In a minimal way; to the least extent.

Used this way, minimally is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use minimally

  • “The cells minimally responsive to lines in this orientation will not fire.”adverb

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

minimally invasiveleast minimallyminimally acceptableminimally adequateminimally affectedminimally processedminimally effectiveminimally involved

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Inflected forms

Grammatical variations of the same word.

  • minimaladjectiveBase word

    The least possible.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

  • minimalistnounPerson or profession

    A conservative who advocates only minor reforms in government or politics.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • minimally invasive coronary bypass surgerynounCompound term

    Heart surgery in which a coronary bypass is performed on the beating heart by the use of small instruments and cameras threaded through small incisions.

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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.