1
: in a bad manner
played badly
2
: to a great or intense degree
want something badly
Phrases
badly off for
British
: strongly in need of (something or someone)
It may seem pie in the sky in the current financial climate, but few could argue that for a city of its size and prestige, Edinburgh is badly off for large-scale sports facilities.—
The Evening News (Edinburgh)
The Evening News (Edinburgh)
: fairly or acceptably well
The economy is doing not badly and looks even better than it really is.—Tom Teepen
Tom Teepen
: to have an unfavorable or low opinion of (someone or something)
"You shouldn't think badly of the town because of this," said Brogan. "It is a good town."—Neil Gaiman
Neil GaimanExamples of badly in a Sentence
He played badly but I played even worse.
The failure reflects badly on the administration.
She wanted the job badly.
I'm badly in need of a vacation.
His fingers were badly frozen.
Recent Examples on the Web
That goal against came as a direct result of Pontus Holmberg badly losing a puck battle in the defensive zone, too.
—Nick Ashbourne, The Athletic, 14 Mar. 2025
For a second time, his side lost badly; liberals now held 80% of the seats in the Lower House.
—Christine Adams / Made By History, TIME, 13 Mar. 2025
The first witness said the minivan driver, later identified as Whitaker, got out of the vehicle and tried to move the woman into the car, but the witness told him to stop moving her because she was badly injured, deputies wrote.
—Olivia Lloyd, Miami Herald, 10 Mar. 2025
His head was swollen to twice its size, he’d been badly beaten and bruised, and there were two holes in his chest that could have been bullet or stab wounds.
—Essence, 10 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for badly
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Nick Ashbourne, The Athletic, 14 Mar. 2025
For a second time, his side lost badly; liberals now held 80% of the seats in the Lower House.
—Christine Adams / Made By History, TIME, 13 Mar. 2025
The first witness said the minivan driver, later identified as Whitaker, got out of the vehicle and tried to move the woman into the car, but the witness told him to stop moving her because she was badly injured, deputies wrote.
—Olivia Lloyd, Miami Herald, 10 Mar. 2025
His head was swollen to twice its size, he’d been badly beaten and bruised, and there were two holes in his chest that could have been bullet or stab wounds.
—Essence, 10 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for badly
Cite this Entry
“Badly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/badly. Accessed 21 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
badly
adverb
bad·ly
ˈbad-lē 
worse
ˈwərs
; worst
ˈwərst
1
: in a bad manner
played badly
2
: very much
wanted the jeans badly
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