desperately
adverb
des·per·ate·ly
ˈde-sp(ə-)rət-lē 
-spərt-
Synonyms
- achingly
- almighty
- archly
- awful
- awfully
- badly
- beastly
- blisteringly
- bone
- colossally
- corking
- cracking
- damn
- damned
- dang
- deadly
- eminently
- enormously
- especially
- ever
- exceedingly
- exceeding
- extra
- extremely
- fabulously
- fantastically
- far
- fiercely
- filthy
- frightfully
- full
- greatly
- heavily
- highly
- hugely
- immensely
- incredibly
- intensely
- jolly
- majorly
- mightily
- mighty
- monstrous [chiefly dialect]
- mortally
- most
- much
- particularly
- passing
- rattling
- real
- really
- right
- roaring
- roaringly
- seriously
- severely
- so
- sore
- sorely
- spanking
- specially
- stinking
- such
- super
- supremely
- surpassingly
- terribly
- that
- thumping
- too
- unco
- uncommonly
- vastly
- very
- vitally
- way
- whacking
- wicked
- wildly
Examples of desperately in a Sentence
all of a sudden everything went desperately wrong
Recent Examples on the Web
At a time when the state desperately needs enormous federal assistance to help with billions of dollars of destruction from the fires, somehow the Democrats seem to think angering Trump with ever more lawsuits is more important.
—
Letters To The Editor, The Mercury News, 7 Feb. 2025
Why this is a good contract extension for the Canucks
The Canucks desperately needed another high-end top-four defenseman to slot in behind Hughes and Filip Hronek.
—Harman Dayal, The Athletic, 6 Feb. 2025
The Atlanta Braves desperately need to add a starting pitcher this winter.
—Kristan Hawkins, Newsweek, 6 Feb. 2025
Between the women screaming, Karen Huger dry heaving, and TJ desperately begging the women not to leave an event that is clearly over and done with, Lucille Ball could not have delivered this stretch of humor any better — and in many ways, this was a perfect way to cap the season.
—Shamira Ibrahim, Vulture, 3 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for desperately 
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Letters To The Editor, The Mercury News, 7 Feb. 2025
Why this is a good contract extension for the Canucks
The Canucks desperately needed another high-end top-four defenseman to slot in behind Hughes and Filip Hronek.
—Harman Dayal, The Athletic, 6 Feb. 2025
The Atlanta Braves desperately need to add a starting pitcher this winter.
—Kristan Hawkins, Newsweek, 6 Feb. 2025
Between the women screaming, Karen Huger dry heaving, and TJ desperately begging the women not to leave an event that is clearly over and done with, Lucille Ball could not have delivered this stretch of humor any better — and in many ways, this was a perfect way to cap the season.
—Shamira Ibrahim, Vulture, 3 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for desperately
Dictionary Entries Near desperately
Cite this Entry
“Desperately.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/desperately. Accessed 22 Feb. 2025.
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