deathly

[deth-lee]

See more synonyms for deathly on Thesaurus.com

adjective

causing death; deadly; fatal.
like death: a deathly silence.
of, relating to, or indicating death; morbid: a deathly odor from the sepulcher.

adverb

in the manner of death.
very; utterly: deathly afraid.

Origin of deathly

before 1000; Middle English dethlich, Old English dēathlīc. See death, -ly

Related formsdeath·li·ness, nounpre·death·ly, adjective

Can be confuseddeadly deathly

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for deathly

Contemporary Examples

I am fortunate that I have never been deathly ill, but whenever I have the stomach flu, I most certainly feel like I am dying.
Why My Norovirus Panic Makes Me Sick
Lizzie Crocker
January 5, 2015
Part Grim Reaper, part angel, this deathly saint had few followers, and they mostly worshipped in private.
America’s Fastest Growing Death Holiday Is From Mexico
Michael Schulson
November 1, 2014
Their network of super-elite inbreeding and strategic couplings had united the West in a deathly embrace.
Can We Divorce Our Elites?
James Poulos
April 13, 2014
Sure, there's that fringe group of weirdos who are deathly afraid of clowns.
'American Idol' Premiere Review: The Clown Show Is Back and We Love It
Kevin Fallon
January 16, 2014
Hideo Nakata, the world famous Japanese horror film director is deathly afraid of one thing: dark waters.
Japanese Horror Director Tackles the 3/11 Tsunami
Jake Adelstein, Nathalie-Kyoko Stucky
February 23, 2013

Historical Examples

His face was colourless, almost fierce; his forehead was deathly white.
The Manxman
Hall Caine
Slowly the colour ebbed from Rohan's face, leaving it deathly pale.
The Historical Nights' Entertainment
Rafael Sabatini
She drew back and said no more, a deathly pallor overspreading her face.
Pretty Madcap Dorothy
Laura Jean Libbey
But he still had to lean on a chair, and his face was deathly pale.
Tales From Two Hemispheres
Hjalmar Hjorth Boysen
He had wondered why the progress of the light had been so deathly slow.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, March 1930
Various

British Dictionary definitions for deathly

deathly

adjective

deadly
resembling deatha deathly quiet

Derived Formsdeathliness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for deathly

adj.

Old English deaþlic "mortal" (see death). Meaning "deadly" is from late 12c.; that of "death-like" is from 1560s.

deathly

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}deathly

Related Words

Examples from the Web for deathly

Contemporary Examples

I am fortunate that I have never been deathly ill, but whenever I have the stomach flu, I most certainly feel like I am dying.

Part Grim Reaper, part angel, this deathly saint had few followers, and they mostly worshipped in private.

Their network of super-elite inbreeding and strategic couplings had united the West in a deathly embrace.

Sure, there's that fringe group of weirdos who are deathly afraid of clowns.

Hideo Nakata, the world famous Japanese horror film director is deathly afraid of one thing: dark waters.

Historical Examples

His face was colourless, almost fierce; his forehead was deathly white.

Slowly the colour ebbed from Rohan's face, leaving it deathly pale.

She drew back and said no more, a deathly pallor overspreading her face.

But he still had to lean on a chair, and his face was deathly pale.

He had wondered why the progress of the light had been so deathly slow.

deathly

Word Origin and History for deathly

adj.

Origin of deathly