desperately

adverb

des·​per·​ate·​ly ˈde-sp(ə-)rət-lē How to pronounce desperately (audio)
-spərt-
Synonyms of desperately
1
: in a way that involves despair, extreme measures, or rashness : in a desperate manner
struggling desperately
desperately crying out
2
: extremely, terribly
desperately tired
desperately important

Synonyms of desperately

Relevance
See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of desperately in a Sentence

all of a sudden everything went desperately wrong
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.
Change was desperately required at Newcastle, given the team felt stale during the final half-season of Howe’s tenure. — Chris Waugh, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026 The museum plaza’s sweeping bridge creates a canopy of welcoming shade (inspired by Expo Park’s own trees), which the city — particularly this part — desperately needs. — Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026 Michigan State is desperately hoping Fitzgerald, its third coach since 2023, can fix a program that has won five or fewer games in each of the past four seasons. — ABC News, 2 Sep. 2026 As Kaepernick tried desperately to keep his protest on message, the rest of his life was picked apart, from his romantic partner to his clothing choices. — Rohan Nadkarni, NBC news, 1 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for desperately

Word History

Etymology

desperate + -ly entry 2

First Known Use

circa 1547, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of desperately was circa 1547

Browse Nearby Words

desperate
desperately
desperateness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Desperately.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/desperately. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of apiary

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All