wholly depend on

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "wholly depend on" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when expressing complete reliance or trust in something or someone. Example: "In this project, we will wholly depend on the expertise of our consultants to guide us through the process."

✓ Grammatically correct

Science

News & Media

Formal & Business

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

8 human-written examples

This reinforced our sense that procrastination doesn't wholly depend on personality; it can be influenced by organizational factors.

Harvard Business Review

Bush administration officials say they can wholly depend on Kuwait, whose very survival after Iraq's invasion in 1990 is owed to American military power marshaled by the president's father.

The New York Times

In the context of developing countries, parental financial resources become all the more important in shaping entrepreneurial attitudes of these students, since most of them partially or wholly depend on their families for educational and other needed support (Sharma, 2014).

Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research

One arbitrariness objection against theological voluntarism is that if theological voluntarism is true, then God's commands/intentions must be arbitrary; and it cannot be that morality could wholly depend on something arbitrary; and so theological voluntarism must be false.

SEP

This finding paints a pathetic picture of a community that has resolved to wholly depend on the government for relief supplies for as long as the government will stretch out its hands to provide for them; not that they cannot prepare to mitigate floods; but there are free hand-outs for the community.

Geoenvironmental Disasters

In favor of the claim that morality could not wholly depend on something arbitrary: when we say that some moral state of affairs obtains, we take it that there is a reason for that moral state of affairs obtaining rather than another.

SEP

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

52 human-written examples

"When the safety of one's country wholly depends on the decision to be taken, no attention should be paid either to justice or injustice, to kindness or cruelty, or to its being praiseworthy or ignominious" (Machiavelli 1518 [1998], 515).

SEP

That, he stressed, "wholly depends on the perceivable credibility of our willingness to use force if necessary".

The Guardian

But with the exception of the Maldives, which is tiny, no affected country wholly depends on tourism.

The Economist

They innovated their own solutions to reduce the risk posed by floods instead of waiting for and wholly depending on support from the government.

International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction

"Whether there's going to be a catastrophe or not wholly depends on how Opec is going to deal with it," she told the Guardian.

The Guardian

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "wholly depend on" when you want to emphasize complete reliance on something or someone, leaving no room for alternative support or methods.

Common error

Avoid using "wholly depend on" in contexts where partial or shared reliance is more accurate. Overusing it can make your writing sound absolute and potentially unrealistic.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "wholly depend on" functions as a verb phrase, indicating a state of complete reliance. As Ludwig AI shows, it describes situations where one entity is fully contingent on another.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

Science

30%

News & Media

40%

Formal & Business

30%

Less common in

Wiki

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "wholly depend on" expresses complete reliance on something. Ludwig AI confirms its grammatical correctness and use in diverse contexts like Science, News & Media, and Formal & Business communication. Though not extremely common, its deliberate use can effectively emphasize total dependence. To enhance clarity, consider related phrases like "completely rely on" or "entirely depend upon", but avoid overuse to maintain realistic tone. As Ludwig shows, the key is to use it when you need to emphasize total dependency.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

completely rely on

Emphasizes total reliance, similar to the original phrase.

entirely depend upon

Uses 'depend upon' instead of 'depend on', which is a more formal phrasing, and 'entirely' for emphasis.

fully rely upon

Similar to 'completely rely on', with a slight variation in wording.

absolutely count on

Indicates a strong degree of certainty and reliance.

exclusively rely on

Suggests reliance on one thing only, no other options.

solely depend upon

Focuses on the singular nature of the dependency.

totally bank on

More informal, suggesting placing all hopes on something.

unconditionally trust in

Highlights the trust aspect of reliance, implying no reservations.

be completely contingent on

Highlights that the existence or outcome is subject to something else.

be at the mercy of

Suggests a vulnerable reliance where the outcome is not in your control.

FAQs

How can I use "wholly depend on" in a sentence?

Use "wholly depend on" to indicate complete reliance. For example, "The success of the project will "wholly depend on" the team's collaboration."

What are some alternatives to "wholly depend on"?

You can use alternatives like "completely rely on", "entirely depend upon", or "fully rely upon" to express a similar meaning.

Is it better to say "wholly depend on" or "entirely depend on"?

Both "wholly depend on" and "entirely depend on" are correct and convey a similar meaning. The choice often depends on personal preference and the specific context.

What is the difference between "depend on" and "wholly depend on"?

"Depend on" indicates reliance, while ""wholly depend on"" emphasizes complete and total reliance, leaving no room for other factors or support.