mightily

American  

[mahyt-l-ee] / ˈmaɪt l i /

adverb

1. in a mighty manner; powerfully or vigorously.

2. to a great extent or degree; very much.

   to desire something mightily.

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ˈmightily British  

/ ˈmaɪtɪlɪ /

adverb

1. to a great extent, amount, or degree

2. with might; powerfully or vigorously

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Usage

What does mightily mean? Mightily means with might—great strength or power. To do something mightily is to do it in a strong or powerful way.Mightily is the adverb form of the adjective mighty, which means extremely strong (as in a mighty warrior) or powerful (as in a mighty king).Sometimes, mighty is used as a very informal way of saying very or extremely, and mightily can be used in a similar way to mean very or very much, as in I’m mightily impressed. This use of mightily can sound a bit old-fashioned or folksy.Example: He ruled mightily, and his empire extended to the ends of the earth.

Etymology

Origin of mightily

before 900; Middle English; Old English mihtiglīce. See mighty, -ly

Example Sentences

D’Amaro then backtracked when the incident gained wider outrage, writing in a mightily corporatese statement that “this situation warrants a sensitive approach to expedite a resolution.”

From Slate • Feb. 4, 2026

Now they are targeting the Olympic title that has so far eluded them, although they came mightily close in 2022, losing to Sweden in the gold medal match.

From BBC • Feb. 2, 2026

Exhibit A is Kraft Heinz: The food giant has struggled mightily.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 22, 2026

McVay had struggled mightily against Kyle Shanahan, his mentor and friend who became coach of the San Francisco 49ers the same year the Rams hired McVay.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 12, 2026

Then Jesse gave a great whoop and leapt into the stream, splashing mightily.

From "Tuck Everlasting" by Natalie Babbit

Related Words

• energetically
• lustily
• strenuously
• strongly
• vigorously