English Reference
Adverb

fatally

adv. manner
B2 Upper Intermediate US /ˈfeɪtəɫi/ UK /fˈeɪtəli/ fa·tal·ly

adv.in a way that causes death or leads to total failure.

adv.in a manner that results in death or leads to a disastrous, irreversible conclusion. Often modifies verbs related to injury or nouns describing flaws in a plan.


SIMPLE

The driver was fatally injured in the crash.

CONTEXTUAL

The project was fatally flawed from the start because the team ignored the budget limits.

COMPLEX

While the initial error seemed minor, it proved fatally damaging to the company's reputation once the internal documents were leaked to the press.

Usage

Commonly used with the past participle 'injured' or 'wounded' in news reports; also used figuratively with 'flawed' or 'weakened'.

Usage fatally politicized

Lawyers for Linda Kitchen say her husband was "fatally injured" after the flight dropped 6,000 ft.

BBC News· 28 Aug 2026

The boy shot and killed a schoolmate at a junior high school before fatally turning the gun on himself, the mayor of Zamboanga City said.

The New York Times· 18 Aug 2026

From fatal + -ly.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Level B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency Frequent
Updated