1
: to the full or entire extent : completely
a wholly owned subsidiary
2
: to the exclusion of other things : solely
a book dealing wholly with herbs
Examples of wholly in a Sentence
She is wholly devoted to her children.
An infant is wholly dependent on its mother.
The claim is wholly without merit.
Recent Examples on the Web
Anyone seeking a full understanding of Mary will benefit from reading her correspondence, published in 1972; the letters, however peculiar in their observations and punctuation, reveal the intellectual capacities of a woman often seen wholly in terms of her emotions.
—
Thomas Mallon, New Yorker, 18 May 2026
West Ham showed themselves to be a bad team, less than the sum of their parts and wholly ill-equipped for the challenge in front of them.
—George Caulkin, New York Times, 18 May 2026
Clare married into the Park Avenue life after falling for Jed, who appears wholly devoted to her.
—John Warner, Chicago Tribune, 16 May 2026
And Thursday night’s performance, while not wholly irrelevant, was just another television rerun broadcast to a less-than-mass audience.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for wholly
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.
Thomas Mallon, New Yorker, 18 May 2026
West Ham showed themselves to be a bad team, less than the sum of their parts and wholly ill-equipped for the challenge in front of them.
—George Caulkin, New York Times, 18 May 2026
Clare married into the Park Avenue life after falling for Jed, who appears wholly devoted to her.
—John Warner, Chicago Tribune, 16 May 2026
And Thursday night’s performance, while not wholly irrelevant, was just another television rerun broadcast to a less-than-mass audience.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for wholly
Cite this Entry
“Wholly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wholly. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
wholly
adverb
whol·ly
ˈhōl-(l)ē 
1
: to the full or entire extent : completely
a wholly different view
2
: to the exclusion of other things : solely
a book devoted wholly to sports cars
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
