sadly

adverb

sad·​ly ˈsad-lē 

1

: in a sad manner : in a way that shows sadness or unhappiness

They spoke sadly of their loss.

She shook her head sadly.

He walked away sadly.

2

: in a way that causes feelings of sadness, disappointment, or regret

a garden that has been sadly neglected for many years

What was top-of-the-line when the house was built was by now sadly outdated.

—Sue Grafton

The Greek populations of these great cities are now sadly diminished or gone altogether, leaving them much duller places.

—Robert Fox

3

: unfortunately

—used to say that something is sad, unfortunate, or regrettable

Sadly, you can upload a perfectly working website today and return a few months later to find that many of its external links have died off.

—Matthew MacDonald

Is there a way to get the virus out of an afflicted cat's system? "Sadly, no," says Dr. [James] Richards.

—Tom Ewing

Synonyms of sadly

• bitterly
• sorrowfully
• painfully
• mournfully
• regretfully
• hard

Examples of sadly in a Sentence

sadly she told us how her dog died

Recent Examples on the Web

If the Premier League’s bottom club hoped to draw a symbolic line under their season from hell with the confirmation of relegation from the Premier League, they were left sadly disappointed by events at Molineux in the first game since their fate was sealed. —Steve Madeley, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2026

Stage star Kelli Barrett, as Bertie, is given far less to work with, sadly. —Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 23 Apr. 2026

Many of Perkins’ Democratic successors have watched sadly as their efforts have been undone with a change in administrations. —Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2026

However, Trickle — who sadly died in 2013 — realized this may have been a mistake. —Matt Reigle Outkick, FOXNews.com, 22 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for sadly

• badly
• gladly
• madly
• comradely