Almost or Nearly?
We use almost and nearly to refer to the progress of things, especially if we are measuring and counting things. In these examples, almost and nearly can both be used:
Example: Don’t give up! You’re almost there.
Example: It’s time for bed. It’s nearly 10 o’clock.
We also use almost and nearly with extreme adjectives such as perfect, impossible or frozen:
Example: That guy is almost impossible.
Example: The chicken is still nearly frozen. I thought you’d taken it out of the freezer.
We use almost (but not nearly) to soften statements:
Example: I almost wish I hadn’t offered to pay his fine.
We use almost before any and before negative words such as no, none, never, nobody, nothing. We don’t use nearly in this way:
Example: She almost never raises her voice.
