frantically

adverb

fran·​ti·​cal·​ly ˈfran-ti-k(ə-)lē 

: in a frantic manner : in a nervously hurried, desperate, or panic-stricken way

[Carlton] Fisk stood several feet down the line, frantically urging the ball fair with his hands. It hit the yellow foul pole above the wall, a home run.

—Ron Fimrite

Wine companies, fearing that younger drinkers are slipping out of their grasp, have been frantically trying to create products that will be viewed as edgy, hip and fun.

—Mitch Frank

During the new moon, a hatch of baby sea turtles erupts from the sand, struggling frantically to get to the ocean.

—Bernice Notenboom

Synonyms

• amok
• amuck
• berserk
• berserkly
• frenetically
• frenziedly
• harum-scarum
• hectically
• helter-skelter
• madly
• pell-mell
• wild
• wildly

Examples of frantically in a Sentence

the veterinarian ran frantically from room to room looking for the escaped hamster

Recent Examples on the Web

For a time, all is chaos, the men frantically running, apparently without direction or strategy. —Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times, 15 May 2025

Looking ahead, this will force three major changes: smaller companies will close or be bought out, businesses will frantically look for suppliers outside China, and consumers will ultimately pay higher prices. —Allbusiness, Forbes.com, 8 May 2025

Mothers frantically scoured aisles in search of posterboard and other supplies for big class projects. —The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 8 May 2025

The men frantically began waving at an approaching car. —Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 8 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1739, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for frantically

• romantically
• semantically