badly

adverb

bad·ly | \ ˈbad-lē

Definition of badly

1 : in a bad manner played badly

2 : to a great or intense degree want something badly

badly off for

British

: strongly in need of (something or someone) It may seem pie in the sky in the current financial climate, but few could argue that for a city of its size and prestige, Edinburgh is badly off for large-scale sports facilities. — The Evening News (Edinburgh)

not badly

: fairly or acceptably well The economy is doing not badly and looks even better than it really is.— Tom Teepen

think badly of

: to have an unfavorable or low opinion of (someone or something) "You shouldn't think badly of the town because of this," said Brogan. "It is a good town."— Neil Gaiman

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about badly

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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

Terra left, badly shaken, with the sickening feeling that her mother was choosing John over her. — Emma Dibdin, Harper's BAZAAR, "A Complete Timeline of the Events of Dirty John," 14 Jan. 2019 In the worst case, this lame-duck gambit means she’s been set up to take the fall if Brexit goes badly for the economy. — The Editorial Board, WSJ, "Theresa May Hangs On," 12 Dec. 2018 He was featured here ahead of Germany’s last game, and is again because that game went badly. — Jonathan Tannenwald, Philly.com, "World Cup schedule, TV and streaming info: Mexico, Brazil aim to win their groups," 26 June 2018 Democrats will need to storm those gates themselves, beginning with finding ways to overcome the resurfacing obstacles that have hurt them so badly in midterm elections before. — Ronald Brownstein, CNN, "Beating Republicans in November will be harder than Democrats thought," 22 May 2018 The sheriff’s office has denied that Zachary Cruz, who attended his brother’s hearing Tuesday, was badly treated. — Curt Anderson, The Seattle Times, "Prosecutors want trial date in Florida school shooting," 8 Jan. 2019 ABC News Black people also complain that they’re treated badly while shopping or dining out. — Nadra Nittle, Vox, "Racial slurs and fat-shaming insults keep popping up on receipts. Is Trump worsening the trend?," 29 Oct. 2018 The humanities used to be disregarded and science was on a pedestal and now the science is being treated just as badly! — Christopher Borrelli, chicagotribune.com, "Our summer of fear: A conversation with Chicago philosopher Martha Nussbaum," 9 July 2018 Lee’s employees are being harassed and treated badly over some hearsay. — Alison Montoya, Cincinnati.com, "Why protesters lined up outside Lee's Famous Chicken," 25 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'badly.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.