STIFFLY Synonyms: 134 Similar and Opposite Words

stiffly

adverb

Definition of stiffly

as in harshly

in a manner so as to cause loss or suffering stiffly criticized for making such indiscreet comments in public

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in strongly

in a vigorous and forceful manner a stiffly fought battle

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for stiffly

Adverb

That decision by the president was praised by Putin but criticized harshly by members of Congress, including some Republicans.

— Jennifer Jacobs, CBS News, 21 Oct. 2026
Stewart was an executive producer of his friend Colbert’s show and harshly criticized the cancellation, rejecting Paramount’s financial justification and accusing the company of bending the knee to the president.

— Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 19 Oct. 2026

Definition of harshly

Adverb

Still, the momentum, by his forecast, strongly favors the Democrats.

— Shawn Tully, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2026
What famous physicists thought The debate between determinism and indeterminism in quantum mechanics has split the physicists into two groups that stand strongly by their views.

— Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of strongly

Adverb

Fetal personhood would also likely eliminate, or at a minimum severely restrict, people who seek to start a family using surrogacy and in vitro fertilization.

— Jim Defede, Miami Herald, 26 Oct. 2026
Torosian had told the prosecutor’s office that an undernourished, severely disabled girl who was receiving treatment at BioMed was subsisting entirely on spinach—on Kotthaus’s orders.

— D. T. Max, New Yorker, 26 Oct. 2026

Definition of severely

Adverb

His views on Europe didn’t always align with the narrative of decline that his MAGA colleagues are pushing so vigorously.

— Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 26 Oct. 2026
Inside the giant exhibition space, that wearable melting pot was vigorously animated by attendees who had arrived mostly from Japan but also from around the world, all wearing its constituent ingredients in their own particular way.

— Luke Leitch, Vogue, 26 Oct. 2026

Definition of vigorously

Adverb

The summer had seen Europe endure an oppressively dry, hot summer, which had seen wildfires spring up across the continent.

— Anthony Wood, Space.com, 26 Aug. 2026
After a bit of a reprieve from an oppressively hot summer, another heat wave is set to scorch Southern California this week.

— Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 17 Aug. 2026

Definition of oppressively

Adverb

Women are typically forcibly sterilized through hysterectomy, tubal ligation, or endometrial ablation, while men are typically subjected to vasectomy.

— Frannie Comstock, Encyclopedia Britannica, 23 Oct. 2026
Trump’s yearly average of removing 380,000 migrants forcibly, rather than voluntarily, is lower than Barack Obama’s average of 392,000 annually in his first term.

— Alec Dent, Washington Post, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of forcibly

Adverb

Shares were last seen down 14%, sitting firmly at the bottom of the Stoxx 600 index.

— Elsa Ohlen, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2026
In this 1966 photo of the musician and his instrument, with glam rock still in the future, one of its superstars is still firmly surrounded by mod, mid-1960s fixtures including his skinny tie and massive ashtray.

— Eleni N. Gage, Architectural Digest, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of firmly

Adverb

Rooting it very fiercely in a time period felt like the wrong choice.

— Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 23 Oct. 2026
The first season of Carrie follows misfit high-schooler Carrie White (Howell) who has spent her life hidden away inside the walls of her home with her fiercely protective mother, Margaret (Samantha Sloyan).

— Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of fiercely

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.

Browse Nearby Words

stiffing

stiffly

stiff-necked

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“Stiffly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stiffly. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of stiffly

adverb

Example Sentences

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