intentionally
Word family
Synonym discussion
Sense: adverb/1
All five describe actions that are not accidental, but each brings a different shade. 'Intentionally' is the neutral all-purpose choice: it states that the person meant to do what they did, without commenting on how much they thought about it ('She intentionally skipped breakfast'). 'Deliberately' adds the idea that the person took time to consider the decision — it implies thoughtfulness, not just intent ('He deliberately chose the slower route to enjoy the view'). 'On purpose' is the informal spoken equivalent: children use it ('I didn't do it on purpose!'), and adults reach for it in casual conversation. 'Purposely' zeroes in on the goal the person wanted to achieve ('She purposely arrived early to get a front-row seat'). 'Knowingly' shifts the focus from the act itself to the actor's awareness of its consequences, which is why it appears frequently in legal language ('He knowingly gave false information'). A useful rule of thumb: for general 'not by accident,' use 'intentionally'; for a thoughtful, weighed choice, use 'deliberately'; for everyday speech, use 'on purpose.'
Common collocations
Adverbs
- quite intentionally
- very intentionally
- somewhat intentionally
- not intentionally
Phrases
- intentionally left out
- intentionally avoided
- intentionally chosen
- intentionally harmed
- done intentionally
- said intentionally
Etymology
Built from the noun 'intention' plus the adverb-forming suffix '-ly'. 'Intention' entered English in the 1300s from Old French 'intencion' (purpose, design), which came from Latin 'intentio' (a stretching out, effort, purpose). The Latin noun is the action form of 'intendere' — literally 'to stretch toward' — made of 'in-' (toward) and 'tendere' (to stretch). So the original picture behind 'intentionally' is of stretching your mind toward a target, just as you might stretch your arm to reach something you want.