desperately

adverb

des·​per·​ate·​ly ˈde-sp(ə-)rət-lē 

-spərt-

1

: in a way that involves despair, extreme measures, or rashness : in a desperate manner

struggling desperately

desperately crying out

2

: extremely, terribly

desperately tired

desperately important

Synonyms of desperately

• extremely
• terribly
• badly
• incredibly
• very
• too
• so
• really
• damn
• damned
• highly
• severely
• seriously
• intensely
• that
• greatly
• far
• especially
• wildly
• fiercely
• heavily
• much

Examples of desperately in a Sentence

all of a sudden everything went desperately wrong

Recent Examples on the Web

The two films are turbocharging a box office that was desperately in need of a reset. —Brent Lang, Variety, 28 Nov. 2025

Such a force would be desperately vulnerable, while not really strengthening Ukraine. —Anatol Lieven, Time, 28 Nov. 2025

The San Francisco Giants and New York Mets desperately need help in their respective starting rotations. —Zach Pressnell, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Nov. 2025

After spending the night at an emergency shelter, Wan and his wife were among hundreds of residents waiting desperately for news. —Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 27 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

desperate + -ly entry 2

First Known Use

circa 1547, in the meaning defined at sense 1