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 The match fell into chaos when England defender Jarell Quansah was shown a straight red card, forcing the Three Lions to desperately hang on. — Alejandro Avila Outkick, FOXNews.com, 7 July 2026 Neymar came into the match about 10 minutes after Endrick, bolstering the offense with a flair that Brazil desperately needed. — Doha Madani, NBC news, 5 July 2026 Some car redesigns are desperately needed so a model can compete in its segment, while others solidify top positions for competitive vehicles that only get better with time. — Charles Singh, USA Today, 2 July 2026 Shobeir made another brilliant stop on a close-range header by Alexis Mac Allister just after the hydration break as Argentina desperately searched for an equalizer. — Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 7 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
  • The team turned to the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory, a stadium-sized synchrotron facility that produces extremely bright X-ray beams.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 6 July 2026
  • Teasing out the impact of a small dose of radiation that occurs in addition to all those other exposures is extremely challenging, and the impact of extremely low exposures has not been decisively demonstrated.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 6 July 2026
Definition of extremely
Adverb
  • But everyone on the Spurs shot terribly from deep in the clutch.
    — Jared Weiss, New York Times, 29 June 2026
  • Wonderfully and terribly, everything does happen for Maddie after her adoring bear of a husband, Jake (Eric Rahill), makes a cooking video of her that goes massively viral.
    — Joshua Rothkopf, Los Angeles Times, 26 June 2026
Definition of terribly
Adverb
  • Schumer badly misread the Democratic electorate and tried to clear the field for his preferred candidate, Maine’s 78-year-old governor, Janet Mills, leaving a vacuum that Platner filled.
    — Michelle Goldberg, Mercury News, 7 July 2026
  • Industrial policy fails not only when badly designed at the top.
    — Nili Gilbert, Forbes.com, 7 July 2026
Definition of badly
Adverb
  • Each location was incredibly challenging, but each location was challenging in a different way.
    — Alex Ritman, Variety, 6 July 2026
  • Dan, your schedule is incredibly busy with this, Rick and Morty, Krapopolis and execing on Haunted Hotel.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 6 July 2026
Definition of incredibly
Adverb
  • Despite consuming mass quantities of high-calorie foods during competition season, most professional competitive eaters are very lean.
    — Jennifer Borresen, USA Today, 3 July 2026
  • Music icon Taylor Swift and football star Travis Kelce, who announced their engagement in August 2025, are anticipated to tie the knot very soon.
    — Brendan Le, PEOPLE, 3 July 2026
Definition of very
Adverb
  • Traditional studios might adopt Chinese models for some preproduction tasks such as concepting, but the geopolitical and intellectual property risks for commercial generations are too prohibitive.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2026
  • His father, Brian Cohn, jumped into the pool to try to pull him out, but the suction from the drain was too strong.
    — Madeline Mitchell, USA Today, 3 July 2026
Definition of too
Adverb
  • Valentine also testified that the FDA encourages infant formula companies to send in all adverse event reports and that nothing prevented Mead Johnson from doing so.
    — David Hilzenrath, USA Today, 2 July 2026
  • The World Cup brings fans from around the world together and on game day, so does public transportation.
    — Kenny Choi, CBS News, 2 July 2026
Definition of so
Adverb
  • However, none of them will really turn heads like the Tetra, or offer anything resembling a rear suspension.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 7 July 2026
  • Here is everything to know about how common anxiety in dogs really is, what the research says about scent work and how to start using it at home.
    — Ryan Brennan, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 July 2026
Definition of really

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Cite this Entry

“Desperately.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desperately. Accessed 9 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of desperately for Spanish Speakers

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