sadly

adverb

sad·​ly ˈsad-lē 

1

: in a sad manner : in a way that shows sadness or unhappiness

They spoke sadly of their loss.

She shook her head sadly.

He walked away sadly.

2

: in a way that causes feelings of sadness, disappointment, or regret

a garden that has been sadly neglected for many years

What was top-of-the-line when the house was built was by now sadly outdated.

—Sue Grafton

The Greek populations of these great cities are now sadly diminished or gone altogether, leaving them much duller places.

—Robert Fox

3

: unfortunately

—used to say that something is sad, unfortunate, or regrettable

Sadly, you can upload a perfectly working website today and return a few months later to find that many of its external links have died off.

—Matthew MacDonald

Is there a way to get the virus out of an afflicted cat's system? "Sadly, no," says Dr. [James] Richards.

—Tom Ewing

Synonyms

• bitterly
• sorrowfully
• painfully
• mournfully
• regretfully
• hard

Examples of sadly in a Sentence

sadly she told us how her dog died

Recent Examples on the Web

Leftovers sadly weren't in the picture afterward. —Patricia Shannon, Southern Living, 1 Oct. 2025

In the Western Conference, sadly, a Joker alone won’t be enough to win the pot. —Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 30 Sep. 2025

That is sadly the position Princess Beatrice finds herself in after the recent scandals her mother, Sarah Ferguson, and her father, Prince Andrew, have been embroiled in. —Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 29 Sep. 2025

Despite working tirelessly to revive Chris for the next 30 minutes, he was sadly pronounced dead at the scene. —Jack Beresford, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for sadly

• badly
• gladly
• madly
• comradely