essentially

adverb

1. 1

   In an essential way. In essence: by nature.

   Near-synonyms: actually, at bottom, at heart, basically, fundamentally, characteristically, centrally, substantially; see also Thesaurus:fundamentally

   The beaver is a social creature, not just occasionally but essentially.

   A thin, crunchy lemon and thyme rosti was essentially the pimped-up aesthetic of the Kettle chip. That's OK. I like Kettle chips.

   A doorknob of whatever roundish shape is effectively a continuum of levers, with the axis of the latching mechanism—known as the spindle—being the fulcrum about which the turning takes place. Applying a force tangential to the knob is essentially equivalent to applying one perpendicular to a radial line defining the lever.

2. 2

   In an essential way. In essence: in most ways that matter; in all ways that matter.

   A: So you're saying, in other words, that he's greedy? B: Essentially, yes, that's what I'm saying.

Forms

comparative

more essentially

superlative

most essentially