Definitions

per se

[pur sey, see, per] / pɜr ˈseɪ, ˈsi, pər /

ADVERB

essentially

Synonyms

WEAK

alone as such by and of itself by definition by its very nature by itself fundamentally in essence in itself independently intrinsically of itself singularly solely virtually

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"This lack of pleasure for music is explained by disconnectivity between the reward circuit and the auditory network -- not by the functioning of their reward circuit, per se," says Marco-Pallarés.

From Science Daily

It doesn’t want to sell cars, per se.

From Barron's

The key to a good Christmas cracker joke is not the same as a good gag per se.

From BBC

I didn’t necessarily come up with a character per se.

From Los Angeles Times