How to Use not likely in a Sentence

not likely

phrase
  • That’s not likely to change in the last few days of his term.
    — John Dorfman, Forbes, 30 Dec. 2024
  • The race is very close, and that’s not likely going to change.
    — Domenico Montanaro, NPR, 3 Sep. 2024
  • The woman is not likely to change them at this late date.
    — Jeanne Phillips, Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2025
  • The Orioles are not likely to trade away their younger stars.
    — Aaliyan Mohammed, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 June 2025
  • And thanks to the climate crisis, in the long run, the deficit in flows is not likely to be reversed.
    — Tom Yulsman, Discover Magazine, 27 Apr. 2023
  • At this stage of the process, though, that’s not likely to hold their attention.
    — Tarot.com, Sun Sentinel, 23 Nov. 2024
  • Trump is not likely to spend his term sheltering in place in the White House.
    — Nolan Finley, Twin Cities, 31 Jan. 2025
  • But Trump and his supporters are not likely to treat this as a walk of shame.
    — Mary Angela Bock, The Conversation, 3 Apr. 2023
  • But the three teams that followed did, and the trip overseas is not likely to derail this team.
    — Steve Silverman, Forbes, 3 Oct. 2024
  • Again, not likely to happen: Our friends in the desert have the Oilers listed at +1400.
    — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 14 June 2024
  • Just 20% said this is not very likely or not likely at all.
    — Brendan Rascius, Miami Herald, 23 June 2025
  • The de facto president of the Trump fan club is not likely to call Trump out on his lies.
    — Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 31 May 2023
  • While victims are not likely to ever be made whole, there is a win here.
    — Michelle Singletary, Washington Post, 28 July 2023
  • Herbst said the inflow of U.S. weapons now is not likely to determine the outcome of the war.
    — Greg Myre, NPR, 24 Apr. 2024
  • An ideal market would, of course, have a ratio of one to one, but that’s not likely.
    — Kristine Gill, Better Homes & Gardens, 15 Apr. 2023
  • But lying for votes, experts say, is not likely a crime on its own.
    — Ken Tran, USA TODAY, 14 Feb. 2023
  • The pact provides a $4 million buyout to the player in the Braves don’t wish to renew it, though that is not likely.
    — Dan Schlossberg, Forbes.com, 7 May 2025
  • Smallmouths from that area are not likely to move down nor breed with my local bass.
    — Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 11 Jan. 2024
  • But the heavy lifting is still more than a month away, with the issues that could lead to a strike not likely to be dealt with before June.
    — Gene Maddaus, Variety, 29 Mar. 2024
  • But that's not likely to happen if your teen has never made a sandwich on their own.
    — Mia Taylor, Parents, 10 Sep. 2024
  • The absence of regulation is not likely to be a good thing.
    — The Physics Arxiv Blog, Discover Magazine, 31 Oct. 2024
  • That is not likely given a recent flurry of filings in the case.
    — Patricia Gallagher Newberry, The Enquirer, 12 Dec. 2024
  • In that regard, there would be three possible, buy not likely, paths for the Heat to open a roster spot.
    — Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 1 Mar. 2023
  • Also, four of the seven games were started by Rangers’ pitchers not likely to start in the playoffs.
    — Evan Grant, Dallas News, 18 Sep. 2023
  • But that’s probably not likely to happen.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 24 Mar. 2026
  • Returning to the lakefront, or looking the same as in the past, is not likely at this point.
    — Frank Vaisvilas, jsonline.com, 23 Mar. 2026
  • But the past three weeks have made clear that air strikes alone are not likely to achieve that goal.
    — Azadeh Moaveni, New Yorker, 22 Mar. 2026
  • The high-stakes dispute is not likely to be resolved by higher court review for months.
    — Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 22 Mar. 2026
  • DeSantis is not likely to veto it.
    — Martin Dyckman, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Mar. 2026
  • That is not likely to change, and Netflix executives see a silver lining in it.
    — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 18 Mar. 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'not likely.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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