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Virtually vs Practically vs Morally

Virtually, practicallymorally can all mean not absolutely or actually, yet so nearly so that the difference is negligible.

So close are these words in meaning that they (especially the first two) are often interchanged although each can carry specific implications that make discriminative use possible.

Virtually may imply that the difference is merely that between what a thing is in name or outward seeming and what it is in fact, in essence, in effect, or, sometimes, in potentiality.

Practically implies a difference between what is enough for practical purposes or from the point of view of use, value, or effectiveness and what satisfies the requirements formally or absolutely.

Morally implies a difference between what satisfies one’s judgment and what is required for proof by law or by logic.

When morally qualifies words such as “impossible,” it occurs in a statement of a conviction and is slightly less positive than “absolutely”.