terribly

adverb

ter·​ri·​bly ˈter-ə-blē How to pronounce terribly (audio)
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
He and Jimmy got into a quarrel about the girl's being fired, and it got terribly bitter.Virginia Foster Durr
2
: 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
And then the next year I played terribly and finished close to last.Gene Littler
3
: very much
I miss you terribly.

Examples of terribly in a Sentence

I'm terribly sorry to bother you
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The trailer below shows Daryl and Carol back on the trail in new locations, meeting new groups including people dancing around some burning effigy not looking terribly sane. Paul Tassi, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024 From a chemical perspective, the extraction, synthesis, or compounding of those medications is not terribly technically difficult. Jorge Just, Vox, 4 Nov. 2024 Post-wash, the texture is a little more relaxed and slightly wrinkled, though not terribly so. Kathleen Felton, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Nov. 2024 The noise of the cicadas throbbed terribly in the trees. Greg Jackson, The New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for terribly 

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of terribly was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near terribly

Cite this Entry

“Terribly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/terribly. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.

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