Meaning & use
feverishly
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Meanings
adverbnot comparable
In a very hurried, anxious way, as if there is no time to lose.
Grammar: Goes with verbs of effort or action: work feverishly, search feverishly.
Patterns
- work feverishly
- search feverishly for something
The students worked feverishly to finish the project before the deadline.
He searched feverishly through his bag for the missing ticket.
Reporters typed feverishly as the news came in.
adverbnot comparable
In a way caused by or like a fever, with heat, restlessness or disturbed thoughts.
Grammar: Used about a person who is ill or in an excited, heated state.
Patterns
- sleep feverishly
- toss feverishly
The patient tossed feverishly in his bed through the night.
She muttered feverishly in her sleep, calling out names.
Common combinations
- work feverishly
- The crew worked feverishly to repair the stage before opening night.
- search feverishly
- She searched feverishly for her passport.
- scribble feverishly
- He scribbled feverishly in his notebook as the idea came to him.
- feverishly typing
- She was feverishly typing the last pages of her report.
- feverishly preparing
- The staff were feverishly preparing for the royal visit.
Synonyms and how they differ
- frantically
- Frantically suggests panic or loss of control, whereas feverishly can also mean energetic and focused.
- furiously
- Furiously can mean angrily or at great speed, so it is not always about urgency alone.
- hurriedly
- Hurriedly just means quickly, while feverishly adds intensity and tension.
- frenziedly
- Frenziedly is more extreme and suggests wild, unthinking activity.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: feverishly or fervently?
feverishly vs fervently
Fervently means with deep and sincere passion, as in hoping fervently, while feverishly stresses hurried, anxious activity.
Practice
Which sentence uses feverishly in the sense of hurried, anxious activity?
Choose one answer.
Feverishly describes urgent, tense effort, as in searching in a hurry. It does not simply mean very or calmly.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “feverishly”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.