Almost vs. Practically — What's the Difference?

Approaching a certain condition or state.

Almost or nearly as described.

Nearly but not entirely.

To a large extent; almost completely.

Very close to happening or being true.

In a useful or sensible way.

Not quite but close in degree or number.

Essentially, though not officially or exactly.

Just short of a particular amount or degree.

For all practical purposes; virtually.

In set theory, when dealing with sets of infinite size, the term almost or nearly is used to refer to all but a negligible amount of elements in the set. The notion of "negligible" depends in the context, and may mean "of measure zero" (in a measure space), "countable" (when uncountably infinite sets are involved), or "finite" (when infinite sets are involved).For example: The set S = { n ∈ N | n ≥ k } {\displaystyle S=\{n\in \mathbb {N} \,|\,n\geq k\}} is almost N {\displaystyle \mathbb {N} } for any k {\displaystyle k} in N {\displaystyle \mathbb {N} } , because only finitely many natural numbers are less than k {\displaystyle k} .

Virtually; almost

Not quite; very nearly

In a practical manner

Slightly short of; not quite; nearly

All but; nearly; almost

Very close to, but not quite.

In a way that is practical

(mathematics) Up to, except for a negligible set where negligible is not universally but contextually defined.

In practice; in effect or actuality, though possibly not officially.

A null set; except for a set of measure 0.

Almost completely; almost entirely

(informal) Something or someone that doesn't quite make it.

With respect to practices or a practice.

Nearly; well nigh; all but; for the greatest part.

In a practical way; not theoretically; really; as, to look at things practically; practically worthless.

(of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished; `near' is sometimes used informally for `nearly' and `most' is sometimes used informally for `almost';

By means of practice or use; by experience or experiment; as, practically wise or skillful; practically acquainted with a subject.

In practice or use; as, a medicine practically safe; theoretically wrong, but practically right.

Almost.

Almost;

(degree adverb used before a noun phrase) for all practical purposes but not completely;

"Almost" implies something is nearly but not fully completed or achieved.

No, "practically" indicates functional completeness without exactness.

Sometimes, it can imply something is true for all practical purposes, though not exactly.

Yes, "almost" is appropriate in both formal and informal contexts.

Yes, especially in contexts emphasizing practical outcomes.

"Practically" suggests something is close enough to be effectively true, focusing on functional sufficiency.

Not always; "almost" emphasizes the small remaining gap, while "practically" emphasizes near-completeness for practical purposes.

Yes, e.g., "I almost drank the whole bottle."

Yes, but they convey different nuances.

Yes, e.g., "It’s almost midnight."

Yes, both imply something is nearly finished, with "practically" focusing more on functional sufficiency.

It shows something is very close to a certain degree, e.g., "almost full."

Yes, both can mean nearly the same in practical terms.

Yes, it focuses on the overall practical outcome.

Yes, e.g., "I almost cried."