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on purpose

 
Idioms: on purpose
 


1.  Deliberately, intentionally, as in He left the photo out of the story on purpose. Shakespeare's use of this idiom was among the earliest; it appears in The Comedy of Errors (4:3): "On purpose shut the doors against his way."
2.  accidentally on purpose. Seemingly accidentally but actually deliberately, as in She stepped on his foot accidentally on purpose. This generally jocular phrase was first recorded in 1862.


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WordNet: on purpose
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Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The adverb has one meaning:

Meaning #1: with intention; in an intentional manner
  Synonyms: intentionally, deliberately, designedly, purposely, advisedly, by choice, by design


 
 

 

Copyrights:

Idioms. The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
WordNet. WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.  Read more