terribly
adverb
ter·ri·bly
ˈter-ə-blē 
ˈte-rə-
1
: to an extreme degree : very : extremely
became terribly ill
had a terribly nice time
got terribly excited
I had tried a little radio before the war and hadn't been terribly impressed with it at the time.—
Walter Cronkite
Walter CronkiteHe and Jimmy got into a quarrel about the girl's being fired, and it got terribly bitter.—Virginia Foster Durr
Virginia Foster Durr2
: in a terrible way : very badly, poorly, or unpleasantly
behaving terribly
They were treated terribly.
This can be regarded as a somewhat progressive attitude because it is true that women were terribly abused in the Roman world.—Norman F. Cantor
Norman F. CantorAnd then the next year I played terribly and finished close to last.—Gene Littler
Gene Littler3
: very much
I miss you terribly.
Examples of terribly in a Sentence
I'm terribly sorry to bother you
Recent Examples on the Web
At times on Saturday, Bremen were terribly naive, exhibiting all the fragility expected of a team built from inexperienced players.
—Sebastian Stafford-Bloor, New York Times, 2 Sep. 2025
Two young, passionate magicians, Robert Angier (Jackman), a charismatic showman, and Alfred Borden (Bale), a gifted illusionist, are friends and partners until one fateful night when their biggest trick goes terribly wrong.
—Caitlin White, Variety, 2 Sep. 2025
That being said, these two companies don't have high yields because of terribly large payouts, which do significantly increase each year with earnings, but rather weakness in their stocks.
—Morgan Chittum, CNBC, 29 Aug. 2025
Another aspect that isn’t terribly sensible is the convertible top, which entails a bit of a ritual to erect, along with side curtains that more or less enclose occupants when inclement weather prevails.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 29 Aug. 2025
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Sebastian Stafford-Bloor, New York Times, 2 Sep. 2025
Two young, passionate magicians, Robert Angier (Jackman), a charismatic showman, and Alfred Borden (Bale), a gifted illusionist, are friends and partners until one fateful night when their biggest trick goes terribly wrong.
—Caitlin White, Variety, 2 Sep. 2025
That being said, these two companies don't have high yields because of terribly large payouts, which do significantly increase each year with earnings, but rather weakness in their stocks.
—Morgan Chittum, CNBC, 29 Aug. 2025
Another aspect that isn’t terribly sensible is the convertible top, which entails a bit of a ritual to erect, along with side curtains that more or less enclose occupants when inclement weather prevails.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for terribly
Cite this Entry
“Terribly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/terribly. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.
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