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
Synonyms
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
Proving that every aspect of the beauty look for Christian Cowan’s A/W ‘25 runway was wholly intentional.
—
Kayla Greaves, Essence, 9 Feb. 2025
The Peychaud’s Bitters, all cherry and anise as opposed to Angostura Bitters’ cinnamon and clove, combines with the herbal pop of absinthe and the spicy backbone of the rye to create something wholly new.
—Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 7 Feb. 2025
While eschewing guarantees eliminates the risk factor for the host network, that’s not to say that the deliveries are wholly devoid of financial implications.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 7 Feb. 2025
All of this obviously presents a thicket of conflict-of-interest problems that are wholly unprecedented in scope and scale.
—Allison Stanger, The Conversation, 7 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for wholly 
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Kayla Greaves, Essence, 9 Feb. 2025
The Peychaud’s Bitters, all cherry and anise as opposed to Angostura Bitters’ cinnamon and clove, combines with the herbal pop of absinthe and the spicy backbone of the rye to create something wholly new.
—Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 7 Feb. 2025
While eschewing guarantees eliminates the risk factor for the host network, that’s not to say that the deliveries are wholly devoid of financial implications.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 7 Feb. 2025
All of this obviously presents a thicket of conflict-of-interest problems that are wholly unprecedented in scope and scale.
—Allison Stanger, The Conversation, 7 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for wholly
Dictionary Entries Near wholly
Cite this Entry
“Wholly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wholly. Accessed 16 Feb. 2025.
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
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