Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.
1.
Nearly is used to indicate that something is not quite the case, or not completely the case.
Goldsworth stared at me in silence for ~ twenty seconds...
Hunter knew ~ all of this already...
Several times Thorne ~ fell...
I ~ had a heart attack when she told me...
The beach was ~ empty...
They ~ always ate outside.
= almost, practically
ADV: ADV group, ADV before v
2.
Nearly is used to indicate that something will soon be the case.
It was already ~ eight o’clock...
I was ~ asleep...
The voyage is ~ over...
You’re ~ there...
I’ve ~ finished the words for your song.
= almost
ADV: ADV group, ADV before v
3.
You use not ~ to emphasize that something is not the case.
Father’s flat in Paris wasn’t ~ as grand as this...
Minerals in general are not ~ so well absorbed as other nutrients...
British car workers did not earn ~ enough money to buy the products they were turning out.
= nowhere near
PHRASE: PHR adj/adv, PHR n emphasis