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📕 rednote ID(小红书号)：3881567312

Marginally: Definition, Examples & Usage Guide (2 meaning)

Meaning 1：slightly (marginally)

marginally 🔊

/ˈmɑːr.dʒɪ.nəl.i/

adv.

by a very small amount; a little bit.

Marginally different test scores on two papers showing a slight increase

slightly 🔊

➕

/ˈslaɪtli/

adv.

By a very small amount; to a slight degree.

📁 Category：School Education 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From 'margin' (edge) + '-ally' (adverb suffix), meaning 'at the edge' or 'barely'.

💡 Mnemonic

Margin note: a small addition, just like a marginal change.

📖 Example

After reviewing the vocabulary, his test score was only marginally better than before. 🔊 After reviewing the vocabulary, his test score was only marginally better than before.

🔗 Collocations

marginally better – slightly improved

marginally higher – a little bit higher

marginally effective – barely effective

🔄 Synonyms

slightly (adv.) – To a small degree.

barely (adv.) – Only just; by a very small margin.

minimally (adv.) – To a minimal extent.

🚫 Antonyms

significantly (adv.) – To a large extent.

substantially (adv.) – By a large amount.

considerably (adv.) – To a great degree.

🌱 Derivatives

margin (n.) – An edge or border; the difference between cost and price.

marginal (adj.) – Relating to the edge; minimal.

marginalize (v.) – To treat as insignificant.

📖 Cultural Story

Derived from Latin 'margo' (edge). 'Marginally' originally meant 'at the edge', now means 'by a small amount', common in statistics.

Meaning 2：minimally (marginally)

marginally 🔊

/ˈmɑːr.dʒɪ.nəl.i/

adv.

in a very small way; to a minimal degree.

Marginally rising financial chart line indicating minimal change

minimally 🔊

➕

/ˈmɪnɪməli/

adv.

In a very small way; to a minimal degree.

📁 Category：Social Economy 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Example

The new policy only marginally increased public support for the project. 🔊 The new policy only marginally increased public support for the project.

🔗 Collocations

marginally increased – slightly increased

marginally reduced – barely reduced

marginally impacted – minimally affected

🔄 Synonyms

minimally (adv.) – To the smallest degree.

slightly (adv.) – By a small margin.

trivially (adv.) – In an insignificant way.

🚫 Antonyms

drastically (adv.) – In a severe and sudden way.

enormously (adv.) – To a very large degree.

immensely (adv.) – To a huge extent.