1
as in deadly
of, relating to, or suggestive of death
his deathly pallor suggested that any attempt to find a pulse would be futile
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in lethal
likely to cause or capable of causing death
smallpox is one deathly disease that medical science has been able to conquer
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Recent Examples of deathly
The deathly avalanche between Camp 2 and Camp 3 always scared me.
—
Ben Ayers, Outside Online, 10 Apr. 2025
Californians must rise and reclaim our Golden State from the deathly and devastating grip of endless bureaucratic cancer.
—Stepheny Price, Fox News, 27 Jan. 2025
For all of those thousands of collegiate Olympians past and present, the roar of the football crowd will be drowned out by the deathly silence of their shuttered programs.
—Mike Bianchi, Orlando Sentinel, 24 July 2024
Gomez has co-led the Hulu series alongside Steve Martin and Martin Short since its 2021 debut, as a band of neighbors who join forces to solve deathly mysteries unfolding around them.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 17 July 2024
The deathly gossip started as St. Patrick’s Day rumo(u)rs that the BBC was on standby for an announcement from the royal family and government buildings were flying flags at half-mast.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2024
While attempting to return to their present, a cryptic force emerges and traps them on a strange plot of land, giving them a deathly ultimatum in order to escape.
—Caroline Brew, Variety, 28 Feb. 2024
The chill of her announcement is accentuated by Muhly’s orchestration, in which bass clarinet, contrabassoon, harp, and cello perform a deathly turn from E major to G minor.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2023
Ben Ayers, Outside Online, 10 Apr. 2025
Californians must rise and reclaim our Golden State from the deathly and devastating grip of endless bureaucratic cancer.
—Stepheny Price, Fox News, 27 Jan. 2025
For all of those thousands of collegiate Olympians past and present, the roar of the football crowd will be drowned out by the deathly silence of their shuttered programs.
—Mike Bianchi, Orlando Sentinel, 24 July 2024
Gomez has co-led the Hulu series alongside Steve Martin and Martin Short since its 2021 debut, as a band of neighbors who join forces to solve deathly mysteries unfolding around them.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 17 July 2024
The deathly gossip started as St. Patrick’s Day rumo(u)rs that the BBC was on standby for an announcement from the royal family and government buildings were flying flags at half-mast.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2024
While attempting to return to their present, a cryptic force emerges and traps them on a strange plot of land, giving them a deathly ultimatum in order to escape.
—Caroline Brew, Variety, 28 Feb. 2024
The chill of her announcement is accentuated by Muhly’s orchestration, in which bass clarinet, contrabassoon, harp, and cello perform a deathly turn from E major to G minor.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deathly
Adjective
-
Over the past 48 hours, Nepal has been rocked by deadly mass protests led by young people who are frustrated over the country's leadership.—
Juliana Kim,
NPR,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Rip currents are the deadliest of surf-zone dangers, making up the majority of deaths among beach swimmers every year, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.—
Jeanine Santucci,
USA Today,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The most recent execution via firing squad in the United States occurred in South Carolina, where Brad Sigmon, 67, was executed in March, opting for the method instead of the electric chair or lethal injection.—
Amanda Castro
Joshua Rhett Miller,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Sep. 2025
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While officers in the garage tried to find Cook’s firearm before approaching him, Miller from outside the front of the house gave commands to other officers to retrieve a shield and a 40mm less-lethal projectile launcher, the reports showed.—
Alex Brizee,
Idaho Statesman,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Young Hamnet’s shuffling off this mortal coil once laid the groundwork for a masterpiece.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
8 Sep. 2025
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Mephistopheles, dispatched by the Devil to serve Faustus, can’t help getting the better of his mortal master, like an infernal Jeeves—or, more to the point, like a handler in the intelligence racket, running an anxious agent in the field.—
Anthony Lane,
New Yorker,
8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Video of the fatal attack showed Kirk speaking to a large crowd of people on the university campus as a shot rings out.—
Richard Hall,
Time,
11 Sep. 2025
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Though Kirk's visit was controversial on campus, police were tracking no specific or credible threats before the fatal shooting, Utah law enforcement sources told ABC News.—
Meredith Deliso,
ABC News,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
There were flies in the kitchen and dead bugs in a utility sink.—
Eleanor Nash,
Kansas City Star,
14 Sep. 2025
-
Fine dead fuels throughout the fire area hit moistures of extinction while the heavy dead and down continued to smolder.—
CA WILDFIRE BOT,
Sacbee.com,
14 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Deathly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deathly. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.
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