How to Use likely in a Sentence

likely

1 of 2 adjective
Definition of likelynext
Synonyms for likelynext
  • This looks like a likely spot for a picnic.
  • They regard him as a likely candidate for the job.
  • That seems to be the most likely explanation.
  • Messi's debut is likely to come in the second half of this game.
    — Safid Deen, USA TODAY, 22 July 2023
  • The larger your sections, the more likely your hair will come out with uneven curls or ones that don't hold.
    — Maria Goldbach, Vogue, 24 Dec. 2023
  • Either one is likely to trounce the rest of the competition.
    — Michael Ordoña, Los Angeles Times, 18 Nov. 2023
  • The more likely etymology points to the root lag, or law.
    — Erika Page, The Christian Science Monitor, 2 Feb. 2024
  • But few football fans seem likely to halt a game in mid-action.
    — Brian Steinberg, Variety, 22 Dec. 2023
  • While its growth has slowed in recent years, China is likely to expand at twice the rate of the United States in the years ahead.
    — Nicholas R. Lardy, Foreign Affairs, 2 Apr. 2024
  • So if your baby or young toddler is sniffly and sneezy, a cold is more likely the culprit.
    — Nicole Harris, Parents, 10 Sep. 2023
  • That said, their paper supports the idea that magnetars are likely one of those sources.
    — WIRED, 25 Oct. 2023
  • In moments of acute pain, women are less likely to be given painkillers.
    — Rob Reddick, WIRED, 9 Mar. 2024
  • At one point, the company hoped to raise about $1 billion from the deal, although a smaller deal looked more likely.
    — Dave Sebastian, WSJ, 30 Nov. 2023
  • The more likely motives behind the league’s attempt to pull out of the U.S. Open Cup were cash and control, essentially two sides of the same coin.
    — Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 22 Dec. 2023
  • Women are five times more likely to die at the hands of a domestic abuser if the abuser has access to a gun.
    — Prem Thakker, The New Republic, 30 June 2023
  • That's likely to be a factor that reveals itself over time.
    — Jr Radcliffe, Journal Sentinel, 29 Aug. 2023
  • In any case, much of the talk has been good-natured and fun, with a sense that whatever shows up in the film is more likely to provoke a cringe than a scandal.
    — Rick Rojas, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2024
  • Friend in the passenger seat, spouse in back is least likely to result in the guest’s feeling left out of the conversation.
    — Jacobina Martin, Washington Post, 30 Nov. 2023
  • Is a partner who has already cheated more likely to cheat again?
    — Emma Specter, Vogue, 21 Mar. 2024
  • Much of the rise is likely to come from rent, which has started cooling but still makes up a large part of the overall inflation snapshot.
    — Rachel Siegel, Washington Post, 12 Dec. 2023
  • And women were more likely to say access was too challenging in their area.
    — Geoff Mulvihill and Linley Sanders, BostonGlobe.com, 12 July 2023
  • Forecasters said large hail will be likely in the watch are, with isolated hail as big as 2.5 inches.
    — Leigh Morgan, al, 17 June 2023
  • Then Royal Ascot horse races are set to take place, likely with some royal guests watching next week.
    — Simon Perry, Peoplemag, 17 June 2023
  • Rain/storm chances are more likely to be isolated rather than widespread and long-lasting.
    — Kxas-Tv (nbc5), Dallas News, 30 June 2023
  • Some drivers of higher prices are likely to keep fading and pull down inflation in the coming months.
    — Christopher Rugaber, Fortune, 12 July 2023
  • By the end of the extended season, only one of the resort’s 25 lifts is likely to be operating, the spokesperson said.
    — Cari Spencer, Los Angeles Times, 22 July 2023
  • Any misstep will be more likely to be noticed and called out by this group, and according to Melo, their backlash can be swift.
    — Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune Crypto, 1 July 2023
  • That’s likely due to the immune-boosting properties of such diets, the authors surmised.
    — Erin Prater, Fortune Well, 9 Jan. 2024
  • In this sense, the attack on Israel is likely to enhance normalization with the Saudis, not diminish it.
    — Gadi Ezra, TIME, 15 Apr. 2024
  • The high court’s ruling, likely to land in late June, has the potential to undo the convictions and sentences of those who have already gone to trial or pleaded guilty, and upend the charges still pending for many more.
    — Ann E. Marimow, Washington Post, 13 Apr. 2024
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likely

2 of 2 adverb
  • He'll very likely be late.
  • Trump likely won't be able to use the stock to get a loan, either.
    — Aimee Picchi, CBS News, 22 Mar. 2024
  • Winds likely blow from the southwest around 5 to 10 mph.
    — Ian Livingston, Washington Post, 30 Dec. 2023
  • Tourism will likely take a hit, and the cost of insuring the movement of goods will go up.
    — Hanna Ziady, CNN, 25 Oct. 2023
  • By Monday, Warner Bros. will likely have three spots in the top five.
    — Lindsey Bahr, Fortune, 25 Dec. 2023
  • The Kings will likely explore the market again this summer, but this is the team that will lead them into the stretch run.
    — Jason Anderson, Sacramento Bee, 16 Feb. 2024
  • Sanders, also known as Coach Prime, said Hunter would likely be out for weeks.
    — Aliza Chasan, CBS News, 20 Sep. 2023
  • Long term, Farmer said changes likely need to be made to roadways themselves.
    — Max Filby, The Enquirer, 5 Apr. 2024
  • The charges Trump is facing are likely going to be damning.
    — Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 25 July 2023
  • Some of the smallest canoes were likely used for fishing trips.
    — Christian Thorsberg, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Mar. 2024
  • Analysts have said all year that crude oil prices would likely rebound in the second half of the year.
    — Bob Henderson, WSJ, 12 July 2023
  • As of now, nominees will likely come from three groups that represent the past, present and future of the genre.
    — Hunter Ingram, Variety, 20 June 2023
  • If the industry attempts to throw out the lawsuit based on the new law, it would likely be challenged by the plaintiffs.
    — Brittany Carloni, The Indianapolis Star, 11 Mar. 2024
  • City planner Keven Bernard said the complex will likely be built in phases.
    — Scott Turner | [email protected], al, 29 June 2023
  • Where and when the phoenix will rise in a city made famous by the Gold Rush and the dot-com bubble is a question that will likely not be answered for years.
    — Thomas Fuller, New York Times, 30 Aug. 2023
  • After the Browns defensive line brought terror, Burrow will likely wake up in a cold sweat in the weeks to come.
    — Irie Harris, cleveland, 11 Sep. 2023
  • This is another spot where a new coaching staff likely means a new QB.
    — Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Dec. 2023
  • Both schools are likely bound for the Division 1 playoffs.
    — Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 2 Feb. 2024
  • An investment account would likely be too risky for this type of short-term goal.
    — Tanza Loudenback, wsj.com, 11 Jan. 2024
  • With the designer on hand, Toyota thought, the true essence of the original would more likely be preserved in the final car.
    — Patrick Bedard, Car and Driver, 20 June 2023
  • North American golf fans are likely happy to hear that.
    — Tori Latham, Robb Report, 16 Apr. 2024
  • The menu will vary according to what’s fresh, Carey says, and the hotel will likely offer an 1899 dinner twice per season.
    — Pamela Wright, BostonGlobe.com, 18 Aug. 2023
  • But more still will likely never learn of the situation or its impact on them.
    — WIRED, 2 Oct. 2023
  • Heavier items like blankets or sheets that risk bunching up will likely need more dryer balls, then, say, a load full of t-shirts.
    — Alida Nugent, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 Jan. 2024
  • And all of them — not just Braziel — are unhappy with the choice likely awaiting them in November.
    — Rachel Treisman, NPR, 28 Feb. 2024
  • While some of the images were taken in photo booths, many others were likely taken by a third party.
    — Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 June 2023
  • During the school year, many of these families likely relied on free school breakfast and lunch to keep their children fed.
    — Elizabeth Ayoola, Essence, 12 July 2023
  • But those using home heating oil will likely get walloped once again.
    — Tami Luhby, CNN, 20 Sep. 2023
  • Putin had likely already decided to invade Ukraine in the late spring of 2021, well before the U.S. withdrawal.
    — Foreign Affairs, 6 Nov. 2023
  • These headwinds will likely continue if the IRS wants to renew it for another tax season.
    — Julie Zauzmer Weil, Washington Post, 15 Apr. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'likely.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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