desperately

adverb

ˈde-sp(ə-)rət-lē How to pronounce desperately (audio)
Definition of desperatelynext
as in extremely
to a great degree all of a sudden everything went desperately wrong

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of desperately Belgium desperately pressed for an equalizer in the final minutes, but Aymeric Laporte volleyed the best chance out of the box. — Greg Beacham, Chicago Tribune, 10 July 2026 Companies that desperately threw themselves into Facebook digital video, like Mic, Mashable, Vocativ, and MTV News, died or slowly faded away. — Max Tani, semafor.com, 9 July 2026 But with 38-year-old Trent Williams at left tackle, a good insurance policy was desperately needed. — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 9 July 2026 The Padres, who desperately need controllable starting pitching, should at least listen to offers for a dominant closer who hasn’t pitched much in recent weeks. — Dennis Lin, New York Times, 9 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for desperately
Recent Examples of Synonyms for desperately
  1. extremely
  2. terribly
  3. badly
  4. incredibly
  5. very
  6. too
  7. so
  8. really
Adverb
  • Be vigilant about never leaving young children and pets in vehicles without supervision, especially during periods of intense heat, as car interiors can quickly become extremely hot.
    — CA Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 14 July 2026
  • Surveillance of a suspect can take hours or days, and is extremely resource-intensive.
    — Caroll Alvarado, CNN Money, 14 July 2026
Definition of extremely
Adverb
  • The reputations of our decent and hard-working journalists were terribly impugned, and today they have been exonerated.
    — K.J. Yossman, Variety, 7 July 2026
  • Your assumption of my competence, while gracious, would be terribly misguided.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 July 2026
Definition of terribly
Adverb
  • Human and animal circadian rhythms could be badly affected if the sun—or a simulacrum of it—never sets.
    — Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 14 July 2026
  • What Peng is arguing is that the AI boom’s boosters — and a lot of investors pricing that boom into equities — may be badly miscalibrated on timing.
    — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 14 July 2026
Definition of badly
Adverb
  • The senior-citizen ballers, whose core lineup still incredibly includes Ronnie Wood and Keith Richards, may even take things on the road.
    — Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 14 July 2026
  • Graham and his sister shared an incredibly close relationship.
    — Oren Oppenheim, ABC News, 13 July 2026
Definition of incredibly
Adverb
  • And about the rip currents Currents are dangerous and a very real problem on the Gulf Coast, including around the barrier islands where Wells was partying.
    — Adam Carlson, PEOPLE, 16 July 2026
  • What that means is all that remains to be filled in is a section in the very middle, in Coral Gables along the University of Miami.
    — Andres Viglucci, Miami Herald, 16 July 2026
Definition of very
Adverb
  • Leather ballet flats dress things up without getting too formal.
    — India Roby, Glamour, 16 July 2026
  • Except that the parents themselves are fighting for control too, especially in those early years.
    — Parents, Parents, 16 July 2026
Definition of too
Adverb
  • The problem is that this group is mostly comprised of uncultured idiots, so Shai and Georgia are the only people who know what Rocky Horror is.
    — Tom Smyth, Vulture, 16 July 2026
  • Part of what makes AI so useful in health and medicine is that the technology excels at identifying trends in large swaths of data, said Jason Droege, CEO of Scale AI, which worked with Mayo Clinic to develop Record Time.
    — Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 16 July 2026
Definition of so
Adverb
  • Because of climate, weather, acorn abundance (yes, really) and decisions about land use dating to colonial times, the bugs are indeed getting worse.
    — Meg Tirrell, CNN Money, 14 July 2026
  • What really took so long was the officials deliberating over the nearest point of relief on the practice ground side.
    — Brody Miller, New York Times, 14 July 2026
Definition of really

Browse Nearby Words

desperate
desperately
desperateness
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Cite this Entry

“Desperately.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desperately. Accessed 18 Jul. 2026.

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