Skip to main content
hellishly

hellishly

2 8.8
In a very intense and unpleasant way
  • adverb
  • /ˈhɛlɪʃli/
translation icon : infernalmente
  • After running a marathon, he felt hellishly exhausted and needed to rest.
  • hellishly hot
  • hellishly long

It will be hellishly bad work, he wrote, so for once I won't have a chance to worry and feel like hell all summer.

Examples

  • The next phase would probably be one of those hellishly intense introspective nightmares.

  • Native history is hellishly complicated and full of ins and outs that you can't possibly begin to imagine unless you've actually gone out there and read it.

    Blog text (34)
  • It's hellishly hard for me to ask for help.

    Blog text (30)
  • The whole bloody, hellishly expensive campaign did nothing.

    Blog text (9)
  • It was almost hellishly perfect.

  • She'd said she was hellishly homesick for California, where there was sun, and saw no reason to go on living without it.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • I have been on drilling rigs in the Amazon region of Peru, and it is hellishly expensive to operate out there.

    Blog text (24)
  • It's also possible that he's in the middle of a hellishly confusing emotional shitstorm and is groping for a way to handle it properly.

    Blog text (30)
  • It's an old story to be betrayed by one's good intentions, for one man's sincere attempts at heroism to backfire in hellishly spectacular ways.

    Blog text (24)
  • The conditions in the stadium were hellishly oppressive during the summer concert.

Synonyms

terribly
vshellishly
378 1.0

In a very bad way

is darker and more diabolic than ordinary extreme badness
brutally
vshellishly
  • Offensive
142 6.1

In a cruel or very harsh way that causes harm

can mean severe unpleasantness without physical harm
horribly
vshellishly
126 3.5

In a very bad or shocking way

is stronger when implying diabolic or intense cruelty
awfully
vshellishly
70 3.0

To happen in a very bad or unpleasant way

is darker, implying evil or extreme nastiness beyond general badness
harshly
vshellishly
49 3.5

In a severe or unkind way that feels unpleasant

can suggest extreme, diabolic cruelty rather than mere severity
viciously
vshellishly
34 5.7

In a cruel and violent way

may mean intense unpleasantness without physical violence
hideously
vshellishly
18 5.5

In a very ugly or shocking way

is focused on moral evil or extreme harshness, not only ugliness
dreadfully
vshellishly
18 4.4

Shows that something is very bad, unpleasant, or extreme

is stronger, often implying diabolic or intense evil beyond mere fear
excruciatingly
vshellishly
16 8.2

In a very painful or strong way

can mean intense unpleasantness without bodily pain
horrendously
vshellishly
6 5.5

In a very bad or extreme way

often stresses evil or diabolic tone rather than mere badness
grievously
vshellishly
  • Formal
6 7.2

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

is more about intense unpleasantness or evil than formal harm
appallingly
vshellishly
6 6.8

Makes people feel shocked or disgusted

often carries a darker, malevolent or evil sense
wickedly
vshellishly
5 6.3

In an evil and cruel way that harms other people

can mean intense badness without deliberate moral intent
terrifyingly
vshellishly
5 6.5

In a way that is very frightening or very strong to show how serious something is

can denote extreme nastiness or evil beyond causing fear
unpleasantly
vshellishly
5 2.7

In a way that makes you feel bad or uncomfortable

is stronger, suggesting diabolic or very intense badness
monstrously
vshellishly
5 6.8

In a very cruel and shocking way

is more general, meaning intense unpleasantness without monstrousness
agonizingly
vshellishly
  • US
4 7.4

In a way that causes very strong physical pain or deep worry

is often used for strong unpleasantness not limited to pain
devilishly
vshellishly
4 6.2

To a very great degree

leans more toward nastiness or diabolic connotations rather than degree
horrifically
vshellishly
3 6.0

In a way that is very shocking or frightening

is often about intense nastiness beyond causing horror
horrifyingly
vshellishly
3 6.7

In a way that makes people feel very afraid or shocked

is more likely used for evil intent rather than only fear
diabolically
vshellishly
3 8.4

In a very evil way

focuses more on raw intensity than deliberate evil
cruelly
vshellishly
3 2.9

In a way that is very strong or extreme

may express intense badness without intentional cruelty
wretchedly
vshellishly
2 6.8

In a very sad and unhappy way

is often harsher, implying evil or intense severity rather than sadness
heinously
vshellishly
  • Formal
1 8.4

To do something in a very shocking and cruel way

is more general, meaning extreme unpleasantness without moral shock
horridly
vshellishly
1 7.0

In a very bad and unpleasant way

can imply deliberate cruelty or diabolic intensity instead
atrociously
vshellishly
1 7.4

In a very bad or shocking way

can be used to imply diabolic evil rather than only cruelty
infernally
vshellishly
  • Literature
1 8.8

In a way that is very bad or annoying

is broader, meaning extreme intensity without implying literal evil
searingly
vshellishly
1 7.2

In a way that feels very painful or shocking

is more about wickedness or extreme nastiness than sharp pain
satanically
vshellishly
1 8.9

In a very evil way

covers intensity or unpleasantness without religious association
vilely
vshellishly
1 8.2

In a very cruel and unfair way

often adds a diabolic or intensely evil shade beyond baseness
nightmarishly
vshellishly
1 7.5

It happens in a very unpleasant and frightening way

can be more about deliberate evil than mere scary qualities
accursedly
vshellishly
  • Literature
9.3

In a way that is very bad or annoying

is more about intensity than specifically evil or diabolic
cursedly
vshellishly
  • Archaic
9.5

In a very annoying and unpleasant way

focuses on harsh intensity rather than moral condemnation
tormentingly
vshellishly
  • NSFW
8.5

In a way that causes someone a lot of pain or worry

is broader and can mean intense unpleasantness beyond suffering
twistedly
vshellishly
  • Informal
9.1

In a cruel way showing pleasure at others' pain

is more about raw intensity and evilness than mere perversity
direfully
vshellishly
  • Archaic
9.9

In a way that shows great fear or warns of danger

is more about diabolic or intensely evil nature than dread
unholily
vshellishly
  • Informal
9.3

To an extremely large degree

is more formal and implies diabolic unpleasantness rather than casual emphasis

Antonyms

92 2.7

To a small, gentle degree

50 1.0

In a friendly and enjoyable way

How Unpleasant

hellishly
2 8.8
awfully
70 3.0
badly
456 1.0
unpleasantly
5 2.7
mildly
92 2.7

Surface Forms

hellishly positive
hellishlier comparative
hellishliest superlative

Morphology

hellishly = hellish (transparent) = hell + ish + ly

The adverb 'hellishly' is transparently formed from the adjective 'hellish' by adding the adverbial suffix '-ly'.

Etymology

Hellishly comes from hell, meaning 'a place of great pain or punishment', plus the ending -ish meaning 'like' and -ly, which makes the word tell how something is done. So, to do something hellishly is to do it in a very bad, intense, or extreme way, because the idea of 'hell' gives the word a sense of strong unpleasantness.