1ADV-GRADED 根本上;本质上 You use essentially to emphasize a quality that someone or something has, and to say that it is their most important or basic quality. 根本上;本质上 [formal, emphasis]
It's been believed for centuries that great writers, composers and scientists are essentially quite different from ordinary people.
几个世纪以来人们一直相信伟大的作家、作曲家和科学家从根本上就与普通人大不相同。
Essentially, vines and grapes need water, heat and light.
2ADV [ADVERB with verb]大体上;基本上 You use essentially to indicate that what you are saying is mainly true, although some parts of it are wrong or more complicated than has been stated. 大体上;基本上 [formal, vagueness]
His analysis of urban use of agricultural land has been proved essentially correct.
他有关城市占用农业用地的分析已被证明大体上是正确的。
Essentially, the West has only two options.
基本上,西方只有两种选择。
The company won the contract by essentially saying it would do the job for free.