deadlier; deadliest
1
: likely to cause or capable of producing death
deadly poison
2
a
: aiming to kill or destroy : implacable
a deadly enemy
b
: highly effective
a deadly exposé
c
: unerring
a deadly marksman
d
: marked by determination or extreme seriousness
3
a
: tending to deprive of force or vitality
a deadly habit
b
: suggestive of death especially in dullness or lack of animation
deadly bores
a deadly conversation
4
: very great : extreme
deadliness
noun
Synonyms
Adjective
Adverb
- achingly
- almighty
- archly
- awful
- awfully
- badly
- beastly
- blisteringly
- bone
- colossally
- corking
- cracking
- damn
- damned
- dang
- desperately
- 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 deadly in a Sentence
Adjective
the world's most deadly snake
a more deadly form of the disease
They launched a deadly attack.
Officers are allowed to use deadly force if necessary.
She shoots with deadly accuracy.
a basketball player with deadly aim
A deadly silence followed his question.
The two gang leaders are deadly enemies.
He spoke with deadly seriousness.
Adverb
I'm deadly serious about making an offer on the house.
Recent Examples on the Web
Nbc San Diego, NBC News, 14 Nov. 2024
While many convicted in the deadly January 6 riot are already angling for pardons, there’s another group of high-profile defendants who could be interested in Trump’s leniency.
—Victoria Bekiempis, Vulture, 12 Nov. 2024
John Aguilar, The Denver Post, 12 Nov. 2024
The Bund event was deadly serious, featuring few jokes and no comedians.
—Russell Contreras, Axios, 28 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for deadly 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Adjective
The shooting in Little Italy San Diego Police are investigating a deadly shooting in broad daylight Wednesday in San Diego’s Little Italy neighborhood that was followed by a shootout involving police a short while later.
—Nbc San Diego, NBC News, 14 Nov. 2024
While many convicted in the deadly January 6 riot are already angling for pardons, there’s another group of high-profile defendants who could be interested in Trump’s leniency.
—Victoria Bekiempis, Vulture, 12 Nov. 2024
Adverb
While delivered with a smile, the question was deadly serious in a congressional district with such an even partisan split that anything could happen to knock the future incumbent off kilter two years from now, as just happened to Democratic first-term Rep. Yadira Caraveo.
—John Aguilar, The Denver Post, 12 Nov. 2024
The Bund event was deadly serious, featuring few jokes and no comedians.
—Russell Contreras, Axios, 28 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for deadly
Dictionary Entries Near deadly
Cite this Entry
“Deadly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deadly. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
deadly
2 of 2 adverb1
: suggesting death
deadly pale
2
: to a very great degree
deadly dull
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