almost

al·most

A0221700 (ôl′mōst′, ôl-mōst′)adv. Slightly short of; not quite; nearly: almost time to go; was almost asleep; had almost finished. See Usage Note at none.

[Middle English, from Old English ealmǣst : eall, all; see all + mǣst, most; see most.]

almost

(ˈɔːlməʊst) advlittle short of being; very nearly

al•most

(ˈɔl moʊst, ɔlˈmoʊst)

adv. very nearly; all but: almost every house; to pay almost nothing for a car. [before 1000; Middle English; Old English (e)almāst, variant of æl mǣst; see all, most]

almost

nearly">nearly1. when you can use 'almost' or 'nearly'

Almost and nearly both mean 'not completely' or 'not quite'. They can be used in front of adjectives or noun phrases, or with verbs.

Dinner is almost ready.We're nearly ready now.I spent almost a month in China.He worked there for nearly five years.Jenny almost fainted.He nearly died.

Almost and nearly can also be used in front of some time adverbials such as every morning and every day, and in front of some place adverbials such as there.

We go swimming almost every evening.I drive to work nearly every day.We are almost there.I think we are nearly there.

If it is almost or nearly a particular time, it will be that time soon.

It was almost 10 p.m.It's nearly dinner-time.2. when you use 'almost'

Don't use 'nearly' in front of adverbs ending in '-ly'. You should use almost in front of these adverbs.

She said it almost angrily.Your boss is almost certainly there.

You can say that one thing is almost like another. Don't say that one thing is 'nearly like' another.

It made me feel almost like a mother.

You can use almost in front of negative words such as never, no, none, no-one, nothing, and nowhere.

He almost never visits.She speaks almost no English.

Don't use 'nearly' in front of negative words like these.

3. when you use 'nearly'

You can use nearly after not to emphasize a negative statement. For example, instead of saying 'The room is not big enough', you can say 'The room is not nearly big enough'.

It's not nearly as nice.We don't do nearly enough to help.

Don't use 'almost' after not like this.

You can use very or so in front of nearly.

We were very nearly at the end of our journey.She so nearly won the championship.

Don't use 'almost' with very or so.

Thesaurus

Adv.

almost - (of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but; "the job is (just) about done"; "the baby was almost asleep when the alarm sounded"; "we're almost finished"; "the car all but ran her down"; "he nearly fainted"; "talked for nigh onto 2 hours"; "the recording is well-nigh perfect"; "virtually all the parties signed the contract"; "I was near exhausted by the run"; "most everyone agrees"nearly, well-nigh, near, nigh, virtually, most, about

almost

adverb nearly, about, approaching, close to, virtually, practically, roughly, all but, just about, not quite, on the brink of, not far from, approximately, well-nigh, as good as The couple had been dating for almost three years.

almost

adverbNear to in quantity or amount:about, approximately, nearly, roughly.Idiom: on the order of.

Translations

几乎

almost

(ˈoːlməust) adverb nearly but not quite. She is almost five years old; She almost fell under a moving car.几乎

almost

→ 几乎zhCN

It's almost two-thirty (US)
It's almost half past two (UK) → 快两点半了

almost

almost there

1. Soon to be or nearly at, to, or in a given location. Don't get so restless, Mary, we're almost there.2. Soon to be or nearly finished with some goal or task. Almost there, everyone! We just need three more orders filled and we'll be done.See also: almost, there

almost doesn't count

Nearly doing something is not the same as actually doing it. A: "Come on Mom, I almost cleaned my whole room!" B: "I asked you to clean your room this weekend before company comes, and almost doesn't count!"See also: almost, count

almost lost it

Nearly erupted in an intense display of emotion, usually anger or laughter. I almost lost it on the waitress after she messed up my order for the third time. Paul almost lost it at the airport when he found out that his luggage was missing. Wow, when he slipped on that banana peel, I almost lost it.See also: almost, lost

almost never

Hardly ever. I almost never go out on Friday nights anymore—I'm too old for that! We almost never travel, so this vacation is a rare treat for us.See also: almost, never

(almost) upon (one)

(Almost) about to happen, arrive, or commence. I can't believe the Christmas season is upon us again. The years seem to be going faster and faster recently! Every time the deadline for filing taxes is almost upon me, I start to get really anxious and irritable.See also: upon

sort of

Somewhat; partially; a little. I'm happy that it's summertime, but I'm still sort of sad that school is over. A: "Are you feeling better?" B: "Sort of. My throat isn't sore anymore but I'm still congested."See also: of, sort

almost lost it

Fig. to nearly lose one's temper, composure, or control, as out of anger. I was so mad, I almost lost it. When he saw the dent in his fender, he almost lost it.See also: almost, lost

sort of

and kind ofYes, but only to a small degree. Bob: Do you like what you're doing in school? Alice: Kind of. Henry: What do you think about all these new laws? Do they worry you? John: Sort of.See also: of, sort

sort of something

and kind of somethingalmost something; somewhat; somehow. Isn't it sort of cold out? That was kind of a stupid thing to do, wasn't it?See also: of, sort

sort of

Informal Somewhat; rather: "Gambling and prostitution ... have been prohibited, but only sort of" (George F. Will).See also: of, sort

almost

al·most

almost

al•most

almost

almost

almost

almost

almost

almost

almost there

almost doesn't count

almost lost it

almost never

(almost) upon (one)

sort of

almost lost it

sort of

sort of something

sort of

almost

Synonyms for almost

adv nearly

Synonyms

Synonyms for almost

adv near to in quantity or amount

Synonyms

Synonyms for almost

adv (of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished

Synonyms