English Reference

close vs closely

Close describes physical or temporal proximity, while closely describes the degree of attention or the tightness of a connection.

close

near in space or time

The new pharmacy is very close to the train station.

closely

with great attention or detail

The security guard watched the monitors closely for any movement.

Watch out
  • The hotel is located closely to the beach.

    The hotel is located close to the beach.

  • You need to follow the instructions close to avoid making mistakes.

    You need to follow the instructions closely to avoid making mistakes.

Remember Close is for distance; closely is for detail.

Fill the gap with one of the two options.

  1. 1.

    We are getting to the deadline for the final project.

  2. 2.

    The two cases are linked by a common piece of evidence.

More like this in Grammar and structure.