desperately

Definitions  ·  Examples  ·  Pronunciations  ·  Etymologies  ·  Related  ·  Statistics  ·  Comments  · 
“
I love my country desperately, which is why I nightly, cornily, off-keyily, sing "God Bless America" to my children before they go to sleep.

View all »
Definitions (5)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary

Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (2)

  1. In a desperate manner; recklessly; without fear or restraint. The French, rather than to endure the Arrows of the English, or be taken, desperately leaped into the Sea. Baker, Chronicles, p. 119. Ye all want money, and you are liberal captains, And in this want will talk a little desperately. Fletcher (and another), False One, iii. 2.
  2. Excessively; violently; unrestrainedly. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. Jer. xvii. 9. She fell desperately in love with him, and took a voyage into Sicily in pursuit of him. Addison.

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (1)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (2)

Toggle elsewhere links Elsewhere on the web

View all »
Examples (50)

  • The Russians were fighting desperately, and the Germans had to win their way inch by inch. —  The Story of the Great War, Volume V (of 12) Neuve Chapelle, Battle of Ypres, Przemysl, Mazurian Lakes
  • The poor niece turned desperately, and just in time to receive the broadside of a still more emphatic, "Arethusa Yes, I have, Aunt 'Liza. —  The Heart of Arethusa
  • I dunno whar ter set it," he cried, desperately, as he flung it from him, and it fell upon the floor close to the wall The dogs lifted their heads to look, and one soft-stepping old hound got up with the nimbleness of expectation, and, with a prescient gratitude astir in his tail, went and sniffed at it. —  His "Day In Court" 1895
  • I remained, desperately, the same as ever, and so, of course, was not the same, for a deed done defiantly bears little resemblance to a deed done naturally. —  The Return Of The Soul 1896
  • One man was overheard to say that I had fought desperately, and covered myself with glory, and another thought that I favored my uncle somewhat, and might succeed to his military virtues I guess I'll take that cheer, if you ain't got no objection," said the teamster, and he slung it into the wagon. —  Campaigns of a Non-Combatant, and His Romaunt Abroad During the War
More examples »
 

Tags

desperately hasn't been tagged yet.

Sign up or sign in to add tags.

Stats

This word has been looked up 27 times.

stop updating
On Twitter

Photos from

flickr images
 

Pronunciations
Record your own »

If you'd like to prod us on getting a pronunciation for this word, sign in (or sign up) and let us know.

Charts
frequency chart

Bubble size: how much this word was used in a year

Bubble height: used more or less than expected, vs. all uses evenly distributed

You can expect to see this word a few times a week.

Recently looked up

odour · iae · antonym · delivery · diphtheria

Recent Favorites

pygopagus · sanglant · Astacus · sweetbread · qualms

Recent Pronunciations

silence · spell it rite · britney · bunda · settii