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Definition very in British English

very adjective, adverb

adjective, adverb

/ˈveri/

Very can be used in the following ways:

as an adverb (before adjectives and adverbs): It had been a long day and he was very tired.I always walk very quickly.She writes very well.

as an adjective (only before a noun): They went down to the very bottom of the sea.The car exploded before my very eyes.

used for emphasizing that a quality exists or is true to a great degree

Example

It was a very good film.

Example

The building looks very old.

Example

I think he's very handsome, don't you?

Example

That's very kind of you, Susan.

Example

I took my music lessons very seriously.

Example

The whole team has been playing very well lately.

Example

I don't think she has very many friends.

Example

Thank you very much.

Example

Very few people came to the wedding.

Synonyms and related words

very particularly deeply

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1.1

used for emphasizing that something is the best, worst, biggest, smallest, first, last etc

Example

They were badly fed, badly clothed, and lived in the very worst conditions.

Example

The website has the very latest music news.

Example

We want to make sure that we choose the very best design.

Example

At the very least, Higgins should have to pay a fine for what he's done.

Synonyms and related words

very particularly deeply

used for emphasizing that someone or something is the best or most suitable

Example

You might be the very person we are looking for for this job.

Example

How did you know this was the very thing I wanted?

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2.1

used for emphasizing that someone or something is exactly the one that you are mentioning and not another one

Example

The very attributes that some people have criticized are the ones that make him most successful.

Example

He's probably lying on some beach in Italy at this very moment.

2.2

used for emphasizing how important or serious something is

Example

Charles realized that his throne and his very life were in danger, and he decided to act.

Example

The chemicals had poisoned his land and destroyed the very basis of his livelihood.

Synonyms and related words

very particularly deeply

2.3

used for emphasizing an extreme place or time, for example at the top or end of something

Example

She smoked her cigarette down to the very end, then stubbed it out.

Example

Can you see that little bird right up at the very top of the tree?

Example

Nick was sitting at the very back of the bus.

Example

We worked till the very end of the day.

2.4

used for emphasizing that something that seems simple or basic can still have an important effect

Example

Quite often the very act of measuring something changes what you are trying to measure.

Example

Sometimes the very thought of the world outside these walls makes me nervous.