Very vs Entirely - What's the difference?
very | entirely |
True, real, actual.
:
*Bible, (w) xxvii. 21
*:whether thou be my very son Esau or not
*(John Milton) (1608-1674)
*:The very essence of truth is plainness and brightness.
*(Edmund Burke) (1729-1797)
*:I looked on the consideration of public service or public ornament to be real and very justice.
*
*:Turning back, then, toward the basement staircase, she began to grope her way through blinding darkness, but had taken only a few uncertain steps when, of a sudden, she stopped short and for a little stood like a stricken thing, quite motionless save that she quaked to her very marrow in the grasp of a great and enervating fear.
*{{quote-news, year=2012, date=November 7, author=Matt Bai, title=Winning a Second Term, Obama Will Confront Familiar Headwinds, work=New York Times
, passage=The country’s first black president, and its first president to reach adulthood after the Vietnam War and Watergate, Mr. Obama seemed like a digital-age leader who could at last dislodge the stalemate between those who clung to the government of the Great Society, on the one hand, and those who disdained the very idea of government, on the other.}}
The same; identical.
:
*
*:Molly the dairymaid came a little way from the rickyard, and said she would pluck the pigeon that very night after work. She was always ready to do anything for us boys; and we could never quite make out why they scolded her so for an idle hussy indoors. It seemed so unjust. Looking back, I recollect she had very beautiful brown eyes.
With limiting effect: mere.
*, I.40:
*:We have many examples in our daies, yea in very children, of such as for feare of some slight incommoditie have yeelded unto death.
To a great extent or degree; extremely; exceedingly.
:
*
*:Then his sallow face brightened, for the hall had been carefully furnished, and was very clean. ¶ There was a neat hat-and-umbrella stand, and the stranger's weary feet fell soft on a good, serviceable dark-red drugget, which matched in colour the flock-paper on the walls.
*, chapter=13
, title= True, truly.
:
To the full or entire extent.
* {{quote-news, year=2012, date=May 15, author=Scott Tobias, work=The Onion AV Club
, title= * {{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=July-August, author=
, magazine=(American Scientist), title= To the exclusion of others.
As adverbs the difference between very and entirely
is that very is to a great extent or degree; extremely; exceedingly while entirely is to the full or entire extent.As an adjective very
is true, real, actual.very
English
(wikipedia very)Adjective
(en-adj)citation
Synonyms
*Adverb
(-)The Mirror and the Lamp, passage=“[…] They talk of you as if you were Croesus—and I expect the beggars sponge on you unconscionably.” And Vickers launched forth into a tirade very different from his platform utterances. He spoke with extreme contempt of the dense stupidity exhibited on all occasions by the working classes.}}
Usage notes
* When used in their senses as degree adverbs, "very" and "too" never modify verbs.Synonyms
* (to a great extent) ever so, (l) (dialectal), (l) (archaic), (l) (dialectal)Statistics
*Anagrams
*entirely
English
Alternative forms
* entierly (chiefly archaic) * intirely (archaic or nonstandard)Adverb
(-)Film: Reviews: The Dictator, passage=Unlike Ali G Indahouse, Baron Cohen’s failed attempt to bring his most famous character into an entirely fictional universe, Borat found the comic tension in placing his Kazakhstani buffoon in delicate social situations, like a rodeo where he supports the “War Of Terror” a bit too zealously.}}
Stephen P. Lownie], [http://www.americanscientist.org/authors/detail/david-m-pelz David M. Pelz
Stents to Prevent Stroke, passage=As we age, the major arteries of our bodies frequently become thickened with plaque, a fatty material with an oatmeal-like consistency that builds up along the inner lining of blood vessels. The reason plaque forms isn’t entirely known, but it seems to be related to high levels of cholesterol inducing an inflammatory response, which can also attract and trap more cellular debris over time.}}
