intently

adverb

in·​tent·​ly in-ˈtent-lē How to pronounce intently (audio)
: in an intent or concentrated manner : with great effort, attention, or concentration
Their eyes, when they look at you and listen intently, focus like laser beams.Molly Haskell
He turned back to face her again and stared at her most intently.Robert C. O'Brien

Examples of intently in a Sentence

intently studied his notes just before the exam
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Cunningham’s message to the group lasted no more than 30 seconds — with starting center Jalen Duren listening intently — but by the time the huddle dispersed, the team seemed unified. Kelly Iko, The Athletic, 21 Jan. 2025 Shade liked watching birds but was also listening intently to the dial-up modem’s buzz. Alexandra Jacobs, New York Times, 19 Jan. 2025 President-elect Trump's administration will be intently focused on making the U.S. border more secure and deporting people who are in the country illegally, but may prove more open to legal immigration of highly skilled workers. Neil Irwin, Axios, 14 Jan. 2025 Working with Post Malone At numerous points during his conversation with The Tennessean, Yoakam circles back to the importance of intently working on his SiriusXM channel while writing material for the project. Marcus K. Dowling, The Tennessean, 23 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for intently 

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of intently was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near intently

Cite this Entry

“Intently.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intently. Accessed 1 Feb. 2025.

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