as in extremely
to a great degree
I'm awfully sorry
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Recent Examples of awfully
The host and her guests have an awfully good time agreeing about everything.
—
Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 24 Apr. 2026
The Orlando teammates shared a quick high-five before thrusting the air awfully close to one another.
—Mark Harris Outkick, FOXNews.com, 23 Apr. 2026
That just seems like an awfully steep price, which Paton said himself last week.
—Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 23 Apr. 2026
Charging over $100 for a short train ride sounds awfully high to me.
—Jesse Zanger, CBS News, 16 Apr. 2026
The result is that these Iranian characters, when talking among themselves in their native tongue, sound awfully like Americans having a conversation in the mall or at a nearby table at a restaurant.
—Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2026
The willingness of the officers to jump into some awfully cold water was for a good cause – Special Olympics Illinois — is admirable.
—Clifford Ward, Chicago Tribune, 3 Apr. 2026
That’s despite the fact that outfielder Wyatt Langford (4 for 28) has gotten off to an awfully quiet start in the two hole.
—Shawn McFarland, Dallas Morning News, 2 Apr. 2026
On one hand, this sounded like awfully sweeping rhetoric for a job that, oversees a handful of preëxisting city programs dealing with community groups and civic outreach.
—Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 2 Apr. 2026
Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 24 Apr. 2026
The Orlando teammates shared a quick high-five before thrusting the air awfully close to one another.
—Mark Harris Outkick, FOXNews.com, 23 Apr. 2026
That just seems like an awfully steep price, which Paton said himself last week.
—Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 23 Apr. 2026
Charging over $100 for a short train ride sounds awfully high to me.
—Jesse Zanger, CBS News, 16 Apr. 2026
The result is that these Iranian characters, when talking among themselves in their native tongue, sound awfully like Americans having a conversation in the mall or at a nearby table at a restaurant.
—Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2026
The willingness of the officers to jump into some awfully cold water was for a good cause – Special Olympics Illinois — is admirable.
—Clifford Ward, Chicago Tribune, 3 Apr. 2026
That’s despite the fact that outfielder Wyatt Langford (4 for 28) has gotten off to an awfully quiet start in the two hole.
—Shawn McFarland, Dallas Morning News, 2 Apr. 2026
On one hand, this sounded like awfully sweeping rhetoric for a job that, oversees a handful of preëxisting city programs dealing with community groups and civic outreach.
—Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 2 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for awfully
Adverb
-
A lot of these fishing tournaments are won by these younger anglers that really haven’t studied the body of water, don’t know it like the older fishermen, but are still extremely successful with the new technology.—
Mike McFeely,
Twin Cities,
24 Apr. 2026
-
The daily afternoon tea in Horizons is also extremely pleasant (don’t skip on the chicken sandwiches, which were more my beat than the scones and jam).—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
23 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
Arthur would have looked very different had another actor played him, according to the filmmaker.—
Bailey Richards,
PEOPLE,
12 Apr. 2026
-
Over time, my relationship with my wife has become very difficult.—
R. Eric Thomas,
Chicago Tribune,
12 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
All told, the destructive flooding killed at least 136 people along a several-mile stretch of the river, raising questions about how things went so terribly wrong.—
Jim Vertuno,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Things aren’t going terribly well as of late for the Prius.—
Joel Feder,
The Drive,
8 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
But even if monetization doesn’t ultimately come to fruition, the tech YouTube created to identify deepfakes on its platform is necessary, prudent and, as multiple sources stressed, incredibly important to an industry in the midst of technological disruption.—
Alex Weprin,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Apr. 2026
-
That power production has overcome incredibly poor luck so far this season.—
Meghan Montemurro,
Chicago Tribune,
21 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
One of the worst things that can happen to a young and evidently talented author is to be lauded too enthusiastically too soon.—
Becca Rothfeld,
New Yorker,
23 Apr. 2026
-
Liverpool, however, have been interested in the past and could present competition for his signature, so too major clubs in Europe.—
Laurie Whitwell,
New York Times,
23 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
The protests appear highly organized, suggesting the involvement of more powerful actors behind the scenes, said Julia Urrunaga, Peru program director at the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA).—
ABC News,
ABC News,
11 Apr. 2026
-
Here’s how to put your lint roller to work in unexpected (and highly effective) ways around your home.—
Jamie Cuccinelli,
Martha Stewart,
11 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
But Cleveland State was, in fact, a damned good basketball team, as were most of the double-digit seed winners in NCAA Tournament history.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
18 Mar. 2026
-
And damned if Love isn’t willing to talk, sometimes candidly and other times in maddeningly vague terms, about all the hell she’s gone through to get to right now.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
28 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
Yes, some of it has aged badly, said Sarah Hemming in the Financial Times.—
The Week UK,
TheWeek,
23 Apr. 2026
-
This is not the first time that badly behaved tourists have been linked to damaged to the fountain.—
Jack Guy,
CNN Money,
23 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Awfully.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/awfully. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
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