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
Liverpool desperately need to maintain their six-point lead at the top of the table with both Arsenal and Forest in touching distance.
—
Oli Gamp, The Athletic, 14 Jan. 2025
Undersea cables have been vital to the sovereignty of Estonia, a former Soviet republic that borders Russia and desperately needs to maintain power and communications channels that are free from Moscow’s control.
—Phillips Payson O’Brien, The Atlantic, 13 Jan. 2025
That meant far too many plays ended with the shot clock ticking down to the final few seconds as LaVine desperately scanned the floor for options before finally forcing up a shot.
—Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 13 Jan. 2025
In the final, pathetic weeks of his failed presidency, Joe Biden has been casting about desperately for a positive legacy.
—Jack Butler, National Review, 12 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for desperately 
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Oli Gamp, The Athletic, 14 Jan. 2025
Undersea cables have been vital to the sovereignty of Estonia, a former Soviet republic that borders Russia and desperately needs to maintain power and communications channels that are free from Moscow’s control.
—Phillips Payson O’Brien, The Atlantic, 13 Jan. 2025
That meant far too many plays ended with the shot clock ticking down to the final few seconds as LaVine desperately scanned the floor for options before finally forcing up a shot.
—Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 13 Jan. 2025
In the final, pathetic weeks of his failed presidency, Joe Biden has been casting about desperately for a positive legacy.
—Jack Butler, National Review, 12 Jan. 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 20 Jan. 2025.
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