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

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

Examples of desperately in a Sentence

all of a sudden everything went desperately wrong

Recent Examples on the Web

One place the Padres desperately need to upgrade is the outfield, but there aren't very many quality outfielders expected to be on the market. —Zach Pressnell, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 July 2025

More legislation is desperately needed, but the laws never seem to catch up with the pace of the technological advances. —Janice Gassam Asare, Forbes.com, 1 July 2025

The company is on a mission to give back power to home healthcare visits to restore trust in an industry that desperately needs it. —William Jones, USA Today, 30 June 2025

New York desperately needs its own T.J. McConnell: a guard who can generate offense for himself and teammates, and keep the wheels turning when Brunson rests. —Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 30 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

desperate + -ly entry 2

First Known Use

circa 1547, in the meaning defined at sense 1