badly

adverb

bad·​ly ˈbad-lē 

1

: in a bad manner

played badly

2

: to a great or intense degree

want something badly

Phrases

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, Scotland)

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)

Will you think badly of me if I disagree?

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

The move, which Legion of Doom famously used by clotheslining an opponent down, seemed to go wrong as Breakker landed badly, and seemed a bit dazed after the spot. —Matthew Couden, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Dec. 2025

The apartment building was badly damaged, and all windows are now boarded up. —Darius Johnson, CBS News, 5 Dec. 2025

Call it a 10-point or four-point swing, the Cowboys were hurt badly by two costly Ferguson mistakes as the Lions built their lead in the first half. —Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 Dec. 2025

However, he was so badly scorched that authorities found skin on one of the seats on the train, law enforcement sources told the New York Post. —Louis Casiano, FOXNews.com, 4 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing badly

• badly off

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