1
: in or to a high place, level, or rank
2
: in or to a high degree or amount
3
: with approval : favorably
Synonyms
- achingly
- almighty
- archly
- awful
- awfully
- badly
- beastly
- blisteringly
- bone
- colossally
- corking
- cracking
- damn
- damned
- dang
- deadly
- desperately
- eminently
- enormously
- especially
- ever
- exceedingly
- exceeding
- extra
- extremely
- fabulously
- fantastically
- far
- fiercely
- filthy
- frightfully
- full
- greatly
- heavily
- hugely
- immensely
- incredibly
- intensely
- jolly
- majorly
- mightily
- mighty
- monstrous [chiefly dialect]
- mortally
- most
- much
- particularly
- passing
- rattling
- real
- really
- right
- roaring
- roaringly
- seriously
- severely
- so
- sore
- sorely
- spanking
- specially
- stinking
- such
- super
- supremely
- surpassingly
- terribly
- that
- thumping
- too
- unco
- uncommonly
- vastly
- very
- vitally
- way
- whacking
- wicked
- wildly
Examples of highly in a Sentence
She is one of the most highly respected journalists in the country.
though she didn't win, she was highly satisfied with her personal results for the marathon
Recent Examples on the Web
Volpe, celebrity stylist Linen is a highly breathable fabric that creates some airflow on days when a good breeze is nowhere to be found, and celebrities have taken note.
—
Madison Yauger, Peoplemag, 10 June 2024
An Oregon State product graded highly by former NFL scouts Daniel Jeremiah and Randy Mueller of the NFL Network and The Athletic, respectively, Fuaga could facilitate a versatile, effective ground game that’s often a hallmark of the Shanahan-West Coast offense.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 June 2024
The performance of highly successful college coaches who made the leap to the NBA (and who did not play pro ball) is modest at best.
—Los Angeles Times, 8 June 2024
To qualify for the S&P 500, companies must be highly liquid US firms with a market capitalization of at least $18 billion and meet profitability, liquidity and share-float standards.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 8 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for highly 
Madison Yauger, Peoplemag, 10 June 2024
An Oregon State product graded highly by former NFL scouts Daniel Jeremiah and Randy Mueller of the NFL Network and The Athletic, respectively, Fuaga could facilitate a versatile, effective ground game that’s often a hallmark of the Shanahan-West Coast offense.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 June 2024
The performance of highly successful college coaches who made the leap to the NBA (and who did not play pro ball) is modest at best.
—Los Angeles Times, 8 June 2024
To qualify for the S&P 500, companies must be highly liquid US firms with a market capitalization of at least $18 billion and meet profitability, liquidity and share-float standards.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 8 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for highly
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'highly.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near highly
Cite this Entry
“Highly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/highly. Accessed 15 Jun. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
highly
adverb
high·ly
ˈhī-lē 
1
: very entry 2 sense 1, extremely
highly pleased
2
: with approval
speaks highly of you
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