badly

adverb

bad·​ly ˈbad-lē 

1

: in a bad manner

played badly

2

: to a great or intense degree

want something badly

see also:

badly off for not badly think badly of

Synonyms of badly

• poorly
• bad

Examples of badly in a Sentence

He played badly but I played even worse.

The failure reflects badly on the administration.

She wanted the job badly.

I'm badly in need of a vacation.

His fingers were badly frozen.

Recent Examples on the Web

Worse still, two sides of Wolves’ home had been closed to the public on safety grounds while a third served as a reminder of how badly things had gone awry. — Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 13 Aug. 2026

In 2023, for example, the Black Sea Fleet's headquarters building in the city was badly damaged by a Ukrainian cruise missile attack. — David Brennan, ABC News, 13 Aug. 2026

It is badly needed medicine and many other things that saved lives for those who received it. — Dp Opinion, Denver Post, 12 Aug. 2026

Years before Jarvis was dragged across the floor of Middle Tennessee Juvenile Detention Center, he was badly injured inside another Crews facility, according to Jarvis’ DCS case file. — Paige Pfleger, ProPublica, 12 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing badly

• badly off
• badly off for
• not badly
• think badly of

Rhymes for badly

• gladly
• madly
• sadly
• comradely

Kids Definition

badly

adverb

bad·​ly ˈbad-lē 

worse

ˈwərs

; worst

ˈwərst

1

: in a bad manner

played badly

2

: very much

wanted the jeans badly