deadly
adjective · adverb
Form of dead , adverb of dead.
Simple meaning
Aiming or willing to destroy.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
dehdleeSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈdɛdli
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adjective
Aiming or willing to destroy; implacable; desperately hostile.
Causing death; lethal.
Very accurate (of aiming with a bow, firearm, etc.).
informal
Very boring.
adverb
Extremely, incredibly.
In a way which suggests death.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Aiming or willing to destroy; implacable; desperately hostile.
Used this way, deadly is a reasonably familiar word with a clearly unfavourable pull. It carries more force than its gentler alternatives. It turns up most in personal or emotional discussion and literature or storytelling contexts.
- Emotional tone
- Negative
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Strong
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Serious and weighty
- Usage feel
- Everyday but emotionally strong
Where it naturally appears
- Personal/emotional discussion
- Literature/storytelling
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use deadly
- “Some types of mushrooms are beautiful but also deadly.”
Share your sentence
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: aiming or willing to destroy
Use This Word
See how this word sounds in a real sentence.
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Use it yourself
Knowing “deadly” starts when you use it. Pick a next step, all free.
Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.