truthfully

adverb

as in honestly
to tell the truth truthfully, I'd rather go to the amusement park than to the museum, but I'll go along with the rest of the group

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of truthfully In an agreement with the state, Josiah Hoffman, the other person indicted in Snellings’ death, in late July pleaded guilty to murder in exchange for a 35-year prison sentence and commitment to testify truthfully against Greer at trial. — Emerson Clarridge, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Aug. 2026 One of the most effective ways of talking back to an oppressive force is by speaking truthfully, by letting your experience rise above the noise of those who would flatten you and your kind into easy categories. — Literary Hub, 14 July 2026 As part of their plea agreements, they are required to testify truthfully in proceedings related to the case, the office said. — Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 29 June 2026 Plus the idea of wearing AI glasses and a tech-bro wrist accessory was, truthfully, a nonstarter. — José Criales-Unzueta, Vanity Fair, 24 June 2026 If a debtor refused to coöperate, Pitman might ingratiate himself, explaining, truthfully, that having the key sure would help him out, or that, without it, the lienholder would bundle the cost of making a new one into the price of getting the vehicle out of hock. — Paige Williams, New Yorker, 22 June 2026 And, truthfully, that’s a serious question mark. — John Romano, The Orlando Sentinel, 21 June 2026 But truthfully, everything Canada has done from the minute Jesse Marsch took over as head coach in 2024 was to prepare for a home World Cup. — Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 17 June 2026 Rather, her sin was to recount truthfully to Congress the intelligence community’s strong assessment that Iran did not intend to build a nuclear weapon. — Arthur House, Hartford Courant, 15 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for truthfully
  1. honestly
  2. frankly
  3. actually
  4. really
Adverb
  • Build your corner deliberately, tend it honestly and be just as willing to stand in someone else’s.
    — Jeanan Yasiri Moe, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2026
  • And honestly, that’s kind of the best joke there is — some classic America’s Funniest Home Videos type stuff.
    — Maria Bamford, Vulture, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of honestly
Adverb
  • Bugs Bunny being in the real world is frankly not as baffling as Michael Jordan’s detour into minor-league baseball.
    — James Grebey, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026
  • My job is to give people joy and entertain them and take them away from, frankly, at the moment, some of the misery of life, where they can get lost in the live gig for two hours.
    — Katie Bain, Billboard, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of frankly
Adverb
  • Arresting for sure, but c’mon how many people were actually going to pay that much for a hair-dryer?
    — Jenny Bailly, Allure, 1 Sep. 2026
  • So to be a part of that in any way is exciting, but to have the honor of actually playing her husband in something?
    — Raechal Shewfelt, Entertainment Weekly, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of actually
Adverb
  • There’s no point building a humanoid robot that’s really good at a specific task and not very good at generalising.
    — Sarah Shephard, New York Times, 1 Sep. 2026
  • The joy Lisa has with her RHUGT cast compared with the dread her RHOSLC cast seems to bring her really bums me out — especially because of how much of this trip is championing the sisterhood of Housewives.
    — Tom Smyth, Vulture, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of really

Browse Nearby Words

truthful
truthfully
truthfulness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Truthfully.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/truthfully. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of apiary

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All