Skip to main content
terribly

terribly

378 1.0
In a very bad way
  • adverb
  • /ˈtɛrəbli/
translation icon : terriblemente
  • "I know your people are terribly busy this early in the morning."
  • go terribly
  • terribly wrong
  • suffer terribly

Things had long ago gone terribly wrong, and would continue to be.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • Well, this is terribly embarrassing.

  • Some games will run terribly or not at all.

  • Things had long ago gone terribly wrong, and would continue to be.

  • But this is very dangerous because things can go terribly wrong terribly quickly.

  • But I might just say, as an aside, that was a terribly difficult decision.

    Academic text (1996)
  • I'm terribly sorry about all this.

  • There were many reasons to believe that the privatization process could go terribly wrong for the steel firms.

    Academic text (1998)
  • The Stalkers have been training for this mission for months, but as they try to land their choppers, something goes terribly wrong.

  • In a Washington Post op-ed, he boldly proclaimed that "something has gone terribly wrong with the war in Afghanistan."

    Academic text (2011)
  • He performed terribly in the competition, finishing in last place.

Synonyms

badly
vsterribly
456 1.0

To a great degree

matches that degree but is more common and plain
poorly
vsterribly
283 1.4

In a bad or unsuccessful way

is more intense, stressing very bad quality rather than just inadequacy
horribly
vsterribly
126 3.5

In a very bad or shocking way

is equally negative but less focused on shock
awfully
vsterribly
70 3.0

To happen in a very bad or unpleasant way

means the same degree but is more neutral in tone
grossly
vsterribly
  • Formal
54 4.3

In a way that is very wrong or extreme

denotes serious badness but without the emphasis on wrongness
miserably
vsterribly
51 2.2

In a way that shows great unhappiness or pain

is about bad quality rather than emotional suffering
woefully
vsterribly
27 6.5

In a way that is very bad or not good enough

says something is very bad without the formal regret tone
hideously
vsterribly
18 5.5

In a very ugly or shocking way

covers unpleasant quality but not only ugliness or shock
dreadfully
vsterribly
18 4.4

Shows that something is very bad, unpleasant, or extreme

is about very bad quality rather than fear or dread
disgustingly
vsterribly
13 4.8

In a way that makes you feel sick or upset

is negative too but less focused on physical revulsion
horrendously
vsterribly
6 5.5

In a very bad or extreme way

is similar but slightly less intense or dramatic
grievously
vsterribly
  • Formal
6 7.2

In a way that causes great harm, pain, or sadness

covers bad quality but not necessarily serious harm
egregiously
vsterribly
6 8.2

In an extremely bad and obvious way that shocks people

refers to poor quality without the notable wrongdoing sense
appallingly
vsterribly
6 6.8

Makes people feel shocked or disgusted

expresses badness too but less shocking or emotive
disastrously
vsterribly
6 5.6

In a way that causes great harm or failure

denotes poor quality but not necessarily large-scale damage
unpleasantly
vsterribly
5 2.7

In a way that makes you feel bad or uncomfortable

means very bad as well but with stronger negative force
sickeningly
vsterribly
4 7.3

In a way that makes you feel disgusted or want to throw up

says something is very bad without focusing on nausea
disappointingly
vsterribly
4 3.8

In a way that is worse than people expected

marks poor quality but not only the sense of disappointment
abysmally
vsterribly
4 7.0

In a very bad way that shows poor quality or failure

is very bad too but less extreme in tone
abominably
vsterribly
3 8.2

In a very rude and cruel way

denotes poor quality without the strong hate element
dismally
vsterribly
3 4.8

In a gloomy way that makes people feel sad or hopeless

refers to bad quality rather than mood or gloominess
wretchedly
vsterribly
2 6.8

In a very sad and unhappy way

focuses on poor quality rather than emotional misery
lamentably
vsterribly
  • Formal
2 8.0

In a way that makes people feel regret or sadness

focuses on bad quality rather than regret or sorrow
hellishly
vsterribly
2 8.8

In a very intense and unpleasant way

says something is very bad without the infernal image
atrociously
vsterribly
1 7.4

In a very bad or shocking way

is negative similarly but slightly less extreme
horridly
vsterribly
1 7.0

In a very bad and unpleasant way

is similar but less focused on horror
damnably
vsterribly
  • NSFW
1 8.1

In a way that makes something very bad or annoying

means very bad too but without the emphatic curse tone
deplorably
vsterribly
1 7.9

In a very bad, shameful way that deserves strong criticism

is about poor quality without moral condemnation
distastefully
vsterribly
1 6.7

In a way that shows dislike or makes people feel disgusted

refers to badness generally rather than offending taste specifically
direfully
vsterribly
  • Archaic
9.9

In a way that shows great fear or warns of danger

means something is very bad but not specifically fearful
displeasingly
vsterribly
6.8

In a way that makes people feel annoyed

is stronger and signals a much worse quality
rottenly
vsterribly
7.4

In a very bad or unpleasant way

describes poor quality without focusing on moral corruption

Antonyms

1.0

In a good or skillful way

83 3.0

In a way that is good enough for the task

How Badly

terribly
378 1.0
badly
285 1.0
poorly
283 1.4
slightly
885 1.0

Surface Forms

terribly positive
terribler comparative
terriblest superlative

Morphology

terribly = terrible (transparent) = terrible + ly

Formed by adding the productive adverbial suffix '-ly' to the adjective 'terrible', yielding a predictable manner adverb meaning 'in a terrible way'.

Etymology

Terribly comes from terrible, which comes from the Latin verb terrere meaning 'to frighten' and shares its root with terror. Because terrible once meant 'causing fear', it came to mean 'very bad', so terribly can describe something done in a very bad or unpleasant way.