chronically

American  

[kron-ik-lee] / ˈkrɒn ɪk li /

adverb

1. happening constantly or habitually.

   Nationally, millions of students are chronically absent every year.

2. happening or recurring over an extended period of time (opposed toacutely ).

   Monitoring is especially helpful for chronically ill patients wishing to avoid costly hospital stays.

   Close to 900 million people worldwide are chronically undernourished.

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Other Word Forms

• nonchronically adverb
• subchronically adverb
• unchronically adverb

Etymology

Origin of chronically

chronic ( def. ) + -ally ( def. )

Example Sentences

Scientists have long suspected that this change helps these animals maintain healthy brain function despite living in chronically low-oxygen environments.

From Science Daily • Apr. 15, 2026

The country has the largest oil reserves in Africa but the years of fighting and instability have left them chronically underdeveloped.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 15, 2026

Even with his career at its pinnacle and before his back became chronically balky, Woods found his way onto tabloid headlines.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026

The system is certainly chronically overloaded, with some of the longest-running trials in the EU.

From BBC • Mar. 21, 2026

But when I get up to investigate, I always find my mother sound asleep, looking innocent the way chronically guilty people do sometimes.

From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García