badly
Americanadverb
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in a defective, incorrect, or undesirable way.
The car runs badly.
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in an unsatisfactory, inadequate, or unskilled manner.
a vague, badly written letter; He paints badly.
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unfavorably.
His neighbors spoke badly of him. The weather turned out badly for the cruise.
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in a wicked, evil, or morally or legally wrong way.
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in a disobedient, naughty, or ethically or socially wrong way.
He treats his parents badly.
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very much; to a great extent or degree.
a house badly in need of repair; to want something badly.
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severely; direly.
to be injured badly.
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with great distress, resentment, regret, or emotional display.
She took the news of her mother's death badly.
adjective
idioms
adverb
-
poorly; defectively; inadequately
the chair is badly made
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unfavourably; unsuccessfully; unfortunately
our scheme worked out badly
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severely; gravely
he was badly hurt
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incorrectly or inaccurately
to speak German badly
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improperly; naughtily; wickedly
to behave badly
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without humanity; cruelly
to treat someone badly
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very much (esp in the phrases need badly , badly in need of , want badly )
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regretfully
he felt badly about it
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poor; impoverished
adjective
Usage
In the sense “very much,” badly is fully standard: He needs help badly. See also bad 1.
Etymology
Origin of badly
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English baddeli, baddeliche, badli(che) “wickedly, evilly, poorly”; see origin at bad 1, -ly
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
How could basic operations on the Navy’s most highly valued and most vigorously maintained platform have deteriorated so badly?
From Slate ● Aug. 19, 2026
Dr Kerryn Little - a wildfire researcher at the University of Birmingham - says the Midlands has been hit badly because of vegetation in urban areas.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Howe has high hopes for “The Body,” about badly behaved Catholic school girls who have prophetic visions after a dance team initiation goes awry.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
It’s also planning a second Jeep EV, despite its first one flopping badly.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
Grandma wanted so badly for me to have more friends—even if they were far away, like Lorren.
From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
