1
: in a bad manner
played badly
2
: to a great or intense degree
want something badly
see also badly off for, not badly, think badly of
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
However, the offense and defense regressed badly in 2025.
—
Jeff Zrebiec, New York Times, 10 Jan. 2026
That kind of outreach is hard in a vast, fragmented state, with Democrats badly outspent by Abbott and struggling to break through costly media markets where attention is scarce and messages quickly fade.
—Karen Brooks Harper, Dallas Morning News, 10 Jan. 2026
How do the Chiefs fall behind that badly in any passing statistic when Patrick Mahomes is the quarterback throwing the football?
—Sam McDowell 9, Kansas City Star, 9 Jan. 2026
The Colorado Avalanche ambushed the Ottawa Senators’ goaltenders so badly Thursday night, the visitors signed a new one in the middle of the game.
—Corey Masisak, Denver Post, 9 Jan. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Badly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/badly. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
Kids 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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