Meaning
exactly, precisely, just
In a sentence
È esattamente quello che volevo sentire.
It's exactly what I wanted to hear.
Dove abiti esattamente?
Where exactly do you live?
Non ricordo esattamente cosa ha detto ieri.
I don't remember exactly what he said yesterday.
Usage notes
- Use esattamente for factual precision. For emphasis like “really” or “totally,” Italian usually prefers proprio, davvero, or appunto.
- Very common alone in conversation as “Exactly.” It strongly confirms what someone just said.
- Don’t confuse it with precisamente: both mean “precisely,” but precisamente is often slightly more formal or careful in tone.