not merely
idiom
—used to say that one thing is true and that another thing is also true
He was not merely a great baseball player, he was also a great person.
Examples of not merely in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Regime change in Iran is not merely a possibility but a historical imperative — inevitable and within reach.
—
Beth Bailey, FOXNews.com, 25 June 2025
Trump is not merely abandoning the United States’ traditional role in defending the prohibition on war and, with it, conquest.
—Oona A. Hathaway, Foreign Affairs, 24 June 2025
Increasingly, stablecoins are viewed as a method of payment and not merely as a repository for digital cash.
—Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 23 June 2025
The president understands that Iran represents a multifaceted threat to Israel, not merely through its nuclear ambitions, but through its missile arsenal and significantly weakened, but still-existing regional terrorist proxies.
—Jason D. Greenblatt, semafor.com, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for not merely
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Beth Bailey, FOXNews.com, 25 June 2025
Trump is not merely abandoning the United States’ traditional role in defending the prohibition on war and, with it, conquest.
—Oona A. Hathaway, Foreign Affairs, 24 June 2025
Increasingly, stablecoins are viewed as a method of payment and not merely as a repository for digital cash.
—Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 23 June 2025
The president understands that Iran represents a multifaceted threat to Israel, not merely through its nuclear ambitions, but through its missile arsenal and significantly weakened, but still-existing regional terrorist proxies.
—Jason D. Greenblatt, semafor.com, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for not merely
Cite this Entry
“Not merely.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/not%20merely. Accessed 4 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share