1
as in poorly
in an unsatisfactory way
I'm afraid you performed quite badly in our last rehearsal
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in terribly
to a great degree
blood donors are badly needed this time of year
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of badly
The film by Anthony Minghella tells the story of a man (Ralph Fiennes) who has been badly burned and cannot remember his identity.
—
Lia Beck, EW.com, 25 June 2025
Statues of Hatshepsut were discovered during excavations of the mortuary temples of tombs of Deir el-Bahri in Luxor in the 1920s—but many appeared badly damaged.
—Rachael O'Connor, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 June 2025
Acquiring Demko holds water for an Edmonton team badly in need of a goalie with the ability to steal games and play at an elite level on the way to a championship.
—Allan Mitchell, New York Times, 22 June 2025
In the Palestinian enclave of Gaza, Hamas — which Iran armed and trained — has been badly weakened and its leaders have been killed.
—Kevin Collier, NBC news, 22 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for badly
Lia Beck, EW.com, 25 June 2025
Statues of Hatshepsut were discovered during excavations of the mortuary temples of tombs of Deir el-Bahri in Luxor in the 1920s—but many appeared badly damaged.
—Rachael O'Connor, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 June 2025
Acquiring Demko holds water for an Edmonton team badly in need of a goalie with the ability to steal games and play at an elite level on the way to a championship.
—Allan Mitchell, New York Times, 22 June 2025
In the Palestinian enclave of Gaza, Hamas — which Iran armed and trained — has been badly weakened and its leaders have been killed.
—Kevin Collier, NBC news, 22 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for badly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for badly
Adverb
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The result is a probability number that’s technically valid, but often poorly communicated and easily misinterpreted.—
Jim Foerster,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2025
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Her comments were poorly received by Fox, Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles and other council members who held a press conference the next day to address the allegations.—
Nick Sullivan,
Charlotte Observer,
30 June 2025
Adverb
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But from the first breath, Roxy sensed something was terribly wrong.—
Ashley Vega,
People.com,
24 June 2025
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Then in April 2021, Granda’s plan to escape went terribly wrong.—
Charles Rabin,
Miami Herald,
24 June 2025
Adverb
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Remember, too much of a good thing can turn bad quickly!—
Amber Smith,
Discover Magazine,
3 Apr. 2024
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That started off bad and got better.—
Vulture,
Vulture,
21 Feb. 2023
Adverb
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Her long, dark hair was messily waved, hanging past her shoulders like a shawl, while her eyebrows were shaved extremely thin, leaving little room for any expression other than a sly smile.—
Kaleigh Werner,
Footwear News,
1 July 2025
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While both the House and Senate bills proposed language that was extremely harmful to the pass-through entity community, the final Senate bill passed made significant modifications that will encourage continued investments via pass through entities.—
Lynn Mucenski Keck,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2025
Adverb
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Waller has also been very public about his battles with addiction, most notably, a 2017 overdose that turned his life around for the better.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
1 July 2025
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Don’t overdo it; a very small amount of concealer is more than enough.—
Laura Solla,
Vogue,
1 July 2025
Adverb
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Both Marlins righties are incredibly talented and expected to be available at the trade deadline.—
Zach Pressnell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 June 2025
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The film obviously has some major horror elements with the infected charging about, but also some tender moments with the family and then an incredibly emotional scene towards the end of the film.—
Alex Ritman,
Variety,
25 June 2025
Adverb
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Furthermore, the definition of disabled is often too narrow: more than one third of non-working adults classified as able-bodied by SNAP report having a disability that impedes their ability to work.—
Emily Eisner,
New York Daily News,
29 June 2025
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If their world is more Minecraft than Monopoly, our systems need to shift too.—
Vibhas Ratanjee,
Forbes.com,
29 June 2025
Adverb
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This suggests that the issues that may have caused both the engines to fail likely occurred at nearly the same moment— a highly unusual scenario, experts said.—
Mika Gröndahl,
New York Times,
28 June 2025
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However, questions remained as to whether the highly enriched uranium that Iran would need to develop a nuclear weapon was at the site at the time.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
27 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Badly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/badly. Accessed 4 Jul. 2025.
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