PRECISELY


Meaning of PRECISELY in English

pre ‧ cise ‧ ly S2 W3 AC /prɪˈsaɪsli/ BrE AmE adverb

[ Word Family: adjective : ↑ precise ≠ ↑ imprecise , ↑ precision ; noun : ↑ precision ≠ ↑ imprecision ; adverb : ↑ precisely ≠ ↑ imprecisely ]

1 . exactly and correctly SYN exactly :

Temperature can be measured precisely.

He arrived at precisely four o'clock.

precisely what/how/where etc

It is difficult to know precisely how much impact the changes will have.

What, precisely, does that mean?

Lathes make wheels, or, more precisely, they make cylindrical objects.

2 . used to emphasize that a particular thing is completely true or correct:

Women in these jobs are paid less precisely because most of the jobs are held by women rather than men.

She’s precisely the kind of person we’re looking for.

3 . spoken formal used to say that you agree completely with someone:

‘It needs to be dealt with now.’ ‘Precisely, before it gets any worse.’

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THESAURUS

▪ exactly used when emphasizing that something is no more and no less than a number or amount, or is completely correct in every detail:

The bill came to exactly $1,000.

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Police are still trying to find out exactly how the accident happened.

▪ precisely exactly – used when it is important to be sure that something is completely correct in every detail:

We need to know precisely how much this is going to cost.

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Can you tell us precisely where he is?

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What precisely do you mean by ‘relativity’?

▪ just especially spoken exactly – used especially when saying that things are exactly right, exactly the same, or exactly in a particular position:

The frame is just the right size for the picture.

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He and his brother are just the same.

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The hotel is just next to the station.

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A new handbag! That’s just what I wanted.

▪ right exactly in a particular position or direction:

The ball hit me right in the eye!

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There’s the house, right in front of you.

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I got a mosquito bite right on the end of my nose.

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He sat down right beside her.

▪ directly exactly in a particular position or direction Directly is more formal than right :

Amy was sitting directly opposite me.

▪ on the dot informal at exactly a particular time, and no earlier or later than that time:

She always leaves the office at 5.30 p.m. on the dot.

▪ bang British English informal exactly – used especially in the following very informal expressions:

The train was bang on time.

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The shot was bang on target.

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Cockatoo Island is right bang in the middle of Sydney harbour.

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English.      Longman - Словарь современного английского языка.