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Certainly vs Essentially - What's the difference?

certainly | essentially |

As adverbs the difference between certainly and essentially

is that certainly is in a way which is certain; with certainty while essentially is in an essential manner; in essence.

certainly

English

Adverb

(en adverb)
  • In a way which is certain; with certainty.
  • *, I.iii.2.2:
  • *:he verily thought he had young live frogs in his belly, qui vivebant ex alimento suo , that lived by his nourishment, and was so certainly persuaded of it, that for many years following he could not be rectified in his conceit.
  • Without doubt, surely.
  • :
  • :
  • :
  • *
  • *:So this was my future home, I thought! Certainly it made a brave picture. I had seen similar ones fired-in on many a Heidelberg stein. Backed by towering hills,a sky of palest Gobelin flecked with fat, fleecy little clouds, it in truth looked a dear little city; the city of one's dreams.
  • *{{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-07, author=(Gary Younge)
  • , volume=188, issue=26, page=18, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly) , title= Hypocrisy lies at heart of Manning prosecution , passage=WikiLeaks did not cause these uprisings but it certainly informed them. The dispatches revealed details of corruption and kleptocracy that many Tunisians suspected, but could not prove, and would cite as they took to the streets.}}
  • An emphatic affirmative answer; of course.
  • :
  • Synonyms

    * absolutely, beyond doubt, indubitably, sure thing, undoubtedly, wis, without a doubt

    Coordinate terms

    * maybe, possibly, arguably, questionably, probably, perhaps

    Derived terms

    * most certainly

    References

    * *

    essentially

    English

    Adverb

    (en adverb)
  • In an essential manner; in essence.
  • * {{quote-magazine, date=2012-03
  • , author=(Henry Petroski) , title=Opening Doors , volume=100, issue=2, page=112-3 , magazine= citation , passage=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.}}

    Synonyms

    * actually, at bottom, at heart, basically, centrally, characteristically, factually, fundamentally, in essence, in the main, inherently, intrinsically, naturally, substantially