adjective
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deadly
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resembling death
a deathly quiet
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of deathly
before 1000; Middle English dethlich, Old English dēathlīc. See death, -ly
Explanation
Something that's deathly reminds you of death. If you dress up as a ghost for Halloween, the makeup on your cheeks might turn your face a deathy shade of gray. A spooky silence can be described as deathly silent, and an unhealthy skin color is often called a deathly pallor. When you shiver, your friend might take your hand and say, "You have a deathly chill." An older meaning of deathly, used especially in literature, was "causing death." The Old English root word is deaþlic, "mortal."
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.
A lot of people are deathly afraid of losing all their money or changing their state, even changing their station in life.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 29, 2026
The atmosphere among those who came to mourn the tragedy was deathly quiet.
From Barron's ● Jan. 1, 2026
As he struggled with a system, which aimed to preserve secrecy and deepen separation, he didn’t know about a deathly further dimension to the institutional inhumanity.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2025
“As soon as I sat down in that chair for the first screen I was deathly terrified,” he said, re-spiraling in real time.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2024
This deathly exhalation from the shell-holes seems to be a mixture of chloroform and putrefaction, and fills us with nausea and retching.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
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.
