implicitly

[ im-plis-it-lee ]

adverb

1. without actually saying so; in a way that does not use words:

   Consumers buying the company’s products are implicitly accepting its practices.

2. without question or reservation; absolutely:

   I trusted her implicitly and listened intently to everything she said.

3. as an inherent but hidden part of the way things are; latently:

   The threat of violence against women is implicitly present all around us, everywhere.

Other Words From

• un·im·plic·it·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of implicitly¹

implicit ( def ) + -ly

Example Sentences

I implicitly distrust any custard pie recipe that tells you to bake it at a higher temperature because it just isn’t right.

From Salon

A country like the UK, with large historical emissions and limited natural sinks, has implicitly committed other countries to maintain natural sinks for decades after UK emissions reach net zero.

From Science Daily

"Thomas Jefferson's idea of 'natural' aristocracy implicitly and necessarily excluded Black people, who he believed could not generate ideas 'beyond the level of plain narration.'"

From Salon

But many other healthcare issues were implicitly on the ballot Tuesday.

From Los Angeles Times

Philosophical concepts used to address these topics have been implicitly determined by the colonizer through the exaltation of certain thinkers and the obscuring of others.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• essentially