1
: in a bad manner
played badly
2
: to a great or intense degree
want something badly
Phrases
badly off for
British
: strongly in need of (something or someone)
It may seem pie in the sky in the current financial climate, but few could argue that for a city of its size and prestige, Edinburgh is badly off for large-scale sports facilities.—
The Evening News (Edinburgh)
The Evening News (Edinburgh)
: fairly or acceptably well
The economy is doing not badly and looks even better than it really is.—Tom Teepen
Tom Teepen
: to have an unfavorable or low opinion of (someone or something)
Will you think badly of me if I disagree?
Examples of badly in a Sentence
He played badly but I played even worse.
The failure reflects badly on the administration.
She wanted the job badly.
I'm badly in need of a vacation.
His fingers were badly frozen.
Recent Examples on the Web
Apparently, someone had sent her longtime beau Slade an embarrassing tape of a song that Tamra had recorded, badly, in a studio at some point in the past.
—Peter Larsen, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025
Things go very badly between the deadly wildlife and growing tensions between the settlers.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025
That gave us an opportunity to see that the boat was badly damaged.
—Jan Wagner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Sep. 2025
Most recently, he was badly injured after a high–speed car crash in New Hampshire in August.
—Washington Examiner Staff, The Washington Examiner, 18 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for badly
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Peter Larsen, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025
Things go very badly between the deadly wildlife and growing tensions between the settlers.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025
That gave us an opportunity to see that the boat was badly damaged.
—Jan Wagner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Sep. 2025
Most recently, he was badly injured after a high–speed car crash in New Hampshire in August.
—Washington Examiner Staff, The Washington Examiner, 18 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for badly
Cite this Entry
“Badly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/badly. Accessed 22 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
badly
adverb
bad·ly
ˈbad-lē 
worse
ˈwərs
; worst
ˈwərst
1
: in a bad manner
played badly
2
: very much
wanted the jeans badly
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