angrily

angrily — adverb

1. showing through your voice, face, or actions that you are upset and annoyed with

1.adverbB1
Definition

showing through your voice, face, or actions that you are upset and annoyed with somebody or something.

Example

Mateo slammed the door angrily after the argument with his sister.

verb + angrily, modifying a forceful action

The customer angrily demanded a refund when she found a hair in her soup.

angrily + verb modifying a speech act

Common collocations
  • angrily demand
  • angrily reject
  • shout angrily
  • stare angrily
  • react angrily
Synonyms
  • furiously

    stronger; suggests intense rage rather than ordinary anger

  • irritably

    milder; more like short-tempered annoyance

  • indignantly

    anger from feeling something is unfair or wrong

  • crossly

    informal British; often used about parents or teachers

Antonyms
  • calmly

    in a relaxed, controlled way

  • cheerfully

    with visible happiness instead of anger

Grammar Patterns

verb + angrily

angrily + verb

Usage Note

Most often modifies verbs of speaking, looking, or sudden physical action (shout, glare, slam, snap). Position is flexible — before or after the verb both sound natural.

Common Mistakes

I am angrily about the news.
I am angry about the news.
use the adjective 'angry' after a linking verb like 'be'; 'angrily' is an adverb that modifies action verbs.

2. describing a storm, sea, or sky that moves or sounds violent and threatening, as

2.adverbB2
Definition

describing a storm, sea, or sky that moves or sounds violent and threatening, as if it were furious.

Example

The waves crashed angrily against the rocks below the lighthouse all night.

literary use: nature behaving like an angry person

Dark clouds rolled angrily across the sky above the small fishing village.

Common collocations
  • waves crash angrily
  • clouds roll angrily
  • sea churn angrily
  • thunder rumble angrily
Synonyms
  • violently

    more neutral; common everyday word for rough weather

  • fiercely

    emphasises strength and intensity of the natural force

Antonyms
  • gently

    softly and peacefully, the opposite of stormy

Grammar Patterns

verb + angrily (of weather/sea)

Usage Note

Mostly literary or journalistic. The subject is always a force of nature — sea, waves, sky, clouds, wind, thunder, river. Don't use in everyday speech about weather.

Common Mistakes

It rained angrily yesterday.
It poured down yesterday.
this sense fits dramatic verbs like 'crash', 'churn', 'roll', not the simple verb 'rain'.

3. describing a cut, burn, or other injury that looks red, swollen, and very sore.

3.adverbB2
Definition

describing a cut, burn, or other injury that looks red, swollen, and very sore.

Example

The mosquito bite on Pia's arm swelled up angrily within an hour.

verb of swelling/inflaming + angrily

His knee was bleeding angrily where the bicycle chain had cut deep into the skin.

Common collocations
  • swell angrily
  • throb angrily
  • bleed angrily
  • glow angrily red
Synonyms
  • painfully

    more general; works for any pain, not only visible injuries

  • fiercely

    emphasises intensity of the soreness

Grammar Patterns

verb/adjective describing a wound + angrily

Usage Note

Typical subject is a wound, scar, rash, bite, or burn. Verbs are physical sensations — throb, sting, swell, glow, bleed. Distinguish from sense 1: here nobody is feeling angry; the injury just looks intensely sore.

Common Mistakes

My head hurt angrily.
My head throbbed painfully.
'angrily' for pain works only when the body part is visibly red or swollen, not for inner aches.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adverb/1

All five describe speaking or acting in a way that shows anger, but they differ in intensity and motivation. 'Angrily' is the neutral, everyday choice and covers most situations from mild irritation to real fury. 'Furiously' is the strongest — reserve it for shouting, slamming, or storming out in real rage. 'Irritably' is the weakest, suggesting short-tempered annoyance rather than full anger; a tired parent might answer irritably, not furiously. 'Indignantly' adds a moral note: the speaker feels treated unfairly or insulted, as in 'She indignantly denied the accusation.' 'Crossly' is informal and slightly British, often used about parents or teachers correcting a child: 'Mum spoke to me crossly when I came home late.' Pick by intensity and trigger: a small annoyance is irritably; a sense of injustice is indignantly; full rage is furiously; everyday anger is angrily.

angrily ↗furiously ↗irritablyindignantly ↗crossly ↗

Common collocations

Phrases

  • react angrily to
  • respond angrily to
  • speak angrily of
  • stare angrily at

Prepositions

  • angrily at (someone)
  • angrily about (something)

Etymology

Old NorseMiddle EnglishEnglish

Formed in Middle English by adding the adverb ending '-ly' to the adjective 'angry'. The adjective itself came from 'anger' (Middle English 'angre'), borrowed from Old Norse 'angr' meaning 'grief, trouble, distress'. Over time the noun's meaning narrowed from general suffering to the specific feeling of being upset at someone, and 'angrily' followed that shift.