excitedly

excitedly — adverb

1. in a way that shows you feel very happy and full of energy, especially when some

1.adverbB1
Definition

in a way that shows you feel very happy and full of energy, especially when something good happens or is about to happen

Example

The children ran excitedly to show their grandmother the puppy.

modifies ran: ran + excitedly

Aiko spoke excitedly about her summer trip to Japan.

post-verb position: spoke + excitedly

Common collocations
  • talk excitedly
  • speak excitedly
  • run excitedly
  • wave excitedly
  • shout excitedly
  • laugh excitedly
  • tell excitedly
  • excitedly explain
  • excitedly describe
Synonyms
  • enthusiastically

    suggests strong interest or eagerness rather than pure emotional excitement; slightly more formal

  • eagerly

    focuses on wanting something to happen soon, often with a sense of impatience

  • animatedly

    describes lively, energetic way of speaking or moving, with visible gestures and expression

  • passionately

    stronger emotion, often with deep personal attachment to the subject

Antonyms
  • calmly

    without strong emotion or hurry

  • boredly

    showing no interest or enthusiasm

Grammar Patterns

[verb] + excitedly

excitedly + [verb]

Usage Note

Can be placed either before the main verb (excitedly told) or after it (spoke excitedly). Pre-verb position lightly emphasises the excitement itself; post-verb position emphasises the action.

Common Mistakes

She smiled excited at the result.
She smiled excitedly at the result.
Use the adverb (excitedly) after a verb, not the adjective (excited).
He was excitedly about the trip.
He was excited about the trip.
'excitedly' modifies actions, not states. Use the adjective 'excited' after linking verbs like 'be', 'feel', 'seem'.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adverb/1

All four describe doing something with strong positive feeling, but they differ in tone and context. 'Excitedly' is the most general and everyday — it fits children running, fans cheering, or a friend sharing news. 'Enthusiastically' is slightly more formal and suggests genuine interest rather than emotional high energy: a teacher enthusiastically explains a topic, but is less likely to laugh or jump. 'Eagerly' carries a sense of wanting something to happen soon: a child eagerly waits for a gift. 'Animatedly' describes lively physical expression — talking with big hand gestures, facial changes, and movement. 'Passionately' implies deep emotional commitment, often to a cause, belief, or hobby. Example: 'Ravi animatedly described the football match' suggests excited gestures, while 'Ravi passionately defended his team' suggests strong personal feeling.

enthusiastically ↗eagerly ↗animatedlypassionately ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

  • almost excitedly
  • nearly excitedly
  • quite excitedly

Phrases

  • talk excitedly about
  • tell someone excitedly that
  • wave excitedly at
  • run excitedly towards
  • shout excitedly for

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Formed from the verb 'excite' (from Latin excitare, meaning 'to rouse, call forth, or set in motion') plus the past-participle suffix '-ed' to form the adjective 'excited', and finally the adverb suffix '-ly'. The core idea of being stirred into strong feeling has remained steady since the 14th century.