allegedly
- 01 C1 Advanced
used to say that something is claimed to be true, even though there is no proof yet.
used to convey that a statement is an assertion rather than a verified fact, often to avoid libel or to signal skepticism.
Simple“The man allegedly stole the car, but the police are still looking for evidence.”
In context“The executive allegedly diverted millions in company funds to offshore accounts, though his legal team maintains that the transactions were entirely transparent.”
UsageUsually placed before the verb it modifies or at the beginning of a sentence to qualify the entire statement.
Teacher's tipThis is a 'shield' word used by journalists and lawyers to talk about crimes before a court has reached a verdict.
PitfallHe allegedly to have stolen the car. He allegedly stole the car.Allegedly is an adverb and should modify the verb directly; it does not function like 'is alleged to'.
SynonymsAntonymsdefinitelyprovenly
“The suspect, who was allegedly recruited by Russia’s secret services, was detained by Polish authorities on 7 August.”
“He also allegedly instructed staff to allow one of the young women to stay at the residence during his absence.”
From alleged + -ly.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.