frantically

adverb

fran·​ti·​cal·​ly ˈfran-ti-k(ə-)lē 

: in a frantic manner : in a nervously hurried, desperate, or panic-stricken way

searching frantically for the key fob

[Carlton] Fisk stood several feet down the line, frantically urging the ball fair with his hands. It hit the yellow foul pole above the wall, a home run.

—Ron Fimrite

Wine companies, fearing that younger drinkers are slipping out of their grasp, have been frantically trying to create products that will be viewed as edgy, hip and fun.

—Mitch Frank

During the new moon, a hatch of baby sea turtles erupts from the sand, struggling frantically to get to the ocean.

—Bernice Notenboom

Synonyms of frantically

• wildly
• desperately
• wild
• uncontrollably
• frenziedly

Examples of frantically in a Sentence

the veterinarian ran frantically from room to room looking for the escaped hamster

Recent Examples on the Web

Companies went from using AI for the sake of using AI to frantically budgeting its use. — Konstantin Klyagin, Forbes.com, 6 Oct. 2026

But as their love affair gets steamier and Haru frantically tries to maintain her elaborate ruse, the dance numbers lose their luster. — Los Angeles Times, 25 Sep. 2026

Despite efforts to frantically re-staff, this is an agency in crisis. — Brenda Goodman, CNN Money, 24 Sep. 2026

In the moments after the girl was run over by the truck, bystanders could be seen frantically waving their hands and running to help her. — Desiree Anello, PEOPLE, 16 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1739, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for frantically

• romantically