English Reference
adverb

expressly

adv.
US /ɛksˈpɹɛsɫi/ UK /ɛkspɹˈɛsli/ ex·press·ly

  1. 01 C1 Advanced Formal

    in a way that is very clear and leaves no doubt about the meaning.

    in an explicit or clear manner that leaves no room for misinterpretation.

    Simple

    The contract expressly forbids employees from sharing company secrets.

    In context

    The judge noted that the statute expressly prohibits such actions, leaving the court no room for a more lenient interpretation.

  2. 02 C1 Advanced Formal

    done for one particular reason or person and nothing else.

    specifically or exclusively for a particular purpose or recipient.

    Simple

    This room was built expressly for the purpose of storing old books.

    In context

    The new legislation was designed expressly to address the loopholes that had allowed tax avoidance in the previous decade.

But the bill would not expressly require a verifiable evidence chain across the different systems involved, from when a user initiates a task to the final outcome.

The Conversation· 13 Aug 2026

Yale says this amounted to a finding that Rignol had used AI; he insists that the committee never expressly said so.

Ars Technica· 31 Jul 2026

From express + -ly.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Level C1 · Advanced
Frequency Frequent
Updated