electively

adverb

as in either

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of electively The majority of women who freeze their eggs electively are White and well-resourced. — Lesley Stahl, CBS News, 31 May 2026 Where Your Insurance Likely Stands For most women freezing eggs electively, insurance won’t cover the procedure. — Allison Palmer, Kansas City Star, 8 Apr. 2026 Pfizer and AstraZeneca recently agreed to lower the cost of prescription drugs for Medicaid after an executive order in May set a deadline for drugmakers to electively lower prices or face new limits on what the government will pay. — Staff, Twin Cities, 6 Nov. 2025 Both agreements, however, build on an executive order Trump signed in May that set a deadline for drugmakers to electively lower prices or face new limits on what the government will pay. — Arkansas Online, 12 Oct. 2025 The agreement by Pfizfer builds on an executive order Trump signed in May setting a deadline for drugmakers to electively lower prices or face new limits on what the government will pay. — Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 30 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for electively
  1. either
  2. optionally
  3. instead
  4. alternately
  5. alternatively
Adverb
  • If the solution isn’t to migrate 70% of the web to a new programming language, then fixing its underlying problems – and all the other software problems in the world – would hardly be an easy fix, either.
    — David Goldman, CNN Money, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Blitzes also haven’t bothered USC’s passing attack much, either.
    — Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of either
Adverb
  • Beyond cargo transport, KONA’s modular architecture and optionally piloted design could eventually support other configurations, including communications relay, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), and payload delivery.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Wavecamper, too, installs two individual rear seats standard but offers fifth and sixth seats optionally, expanding the Flex E-Line's capability to serve as a proper everyday MPV for families, as well as a cozy four-sleeper camper van.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of optionally
Adverb
  • Earlier this year, the White House struck a series of deals with offshore wind developers to abandon projects off the coast and invest instead in fossil fuel infrastructure.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
  • To avoid cutting workers, Torani cut back on other expenses instead, including marketing and advertising.
    — Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of instead
Adverb
  • On the mezzanine, young people alternately browsed and posed for Beatles-style photographs taken from below.
    — Nathan Heller, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2026
  • In her remarks, the WNBA commissioner sounded alternately satisfied and sensitive, conveying her pride for the undeniable growth of the league over her term while also occasionally striking a defensive tone.
    — Sara Germano, Sportico.com, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of alternately
Adverb
  • The hotel can also arrange transportation by boat, helicopter, or private plane—alternatively, come by yacht and anchor down at the edge of the bay.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Oct. 2026
  • The Ocarina of Time remake, alternatively, maintains the original game's cartoony aesthetic but layers it with intricate detail.
    — James Perkins Mastromarino, NPR, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of alternatively

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Cite this Entry

“Electively.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/electively. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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