Nominally Meaning and Examples

"Nominally" means "in name only," meaning officially on paper but may not apply in reality.

For example, a CEO can be nominally in charge of a company, but in reality, he might not do much work and simply lets his subordinates do all the heavy lifting. This means on paper and on official documents, he is the CEO of the company, but in reality, he does not perform his tasks properly. His presence has little actual effect or significance at the company.

Another example would be a government policy that nominally aims to reduce pollution in the air, but in reality, does not have any effect because of how poorly it is executed. In theory and on paper, the policy might have an elaborate outline of how it will help reduce carbon emissions, but in actuality, the plan is not executed well because the people in charge of implementing it do a poor job.

Example sentences

The new policy was nominally aimed at reducing paperwork, but it had little impact on the overall administrative burden.
Despite being nominally in charge, the team leader rarely made decisions without consulting the rest of the group.
The company claimed to support environmental initiatives, but its actions were only nominally aligned with its stated values.
The school's dress code was nominally enforced, leading to varying interpretations of acceptable attire.
Although the movie was nominally a comedy, it touched on serious social issues.
The company provided nominally flexible working hours, but employees often felt pressured to work overtime.
The treaty was nominally designed to promote peace, but it did little to address the root causes of the conflict.
The organization was nominally non-profit, but its financial practices raised questions about its true intentions.
The restaurant claimed to serve healthy food, but many menu items were only nominally nutritious.
The country had nominally free elections, but there were concerns about voter intimidation and manipulation.

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