quintessentially

/ˌkwɪntɪˈsɛnʃəli/

adverb

In a manner that is typical or characteristic of a thing's nature.

Similar
typically
UncommonScrabble 28
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Meanings

adverbquintessentially (not comparable)
  1. not comparableIn a manner that is typical or characteristic of a thing's nature.

    Peri handed Ptolemy his helmet. It had a crest on it, which she always thought looked quintessentially Roman.

    1994, Christopher Bulis, “ch XXIII”, in State of Change, page 237
    1 more example

    The program's most quintessentially Macintoshian feature, one as yet unique among spreadsheets, is its icon bar, which resides at the top of the screen just below the standard menu bar.

    1985 September 15, Erik Snadberg-Diment, “Number Crunching on the Macintosh”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

    Synonyms: typically

Synonyms & antonyms

adverbIn a manner that is typical or characteristic of a thing's nature.

Similar
typically
Also see
essentially

Origin

From quintessential + -ly.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

quintessentially. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/quintessentially

MLA

“quintessentially.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/quintessentially. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “quintessentially,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/quintessentially.

Source: quintessentially on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.