Darkly means in a gloomy, threatening, or sinister way. When storm clouds gather darkly overhead, they look heavy and menacing. When someone speaks darkly about the future, their words carry warning and foreboding, like they expect something bad to happen.

The word often describes a mood or tone that feels ominous or disturbing. A darkly funny joke might make you laugh but also feel slightly uncomfortable, like humor about something serious or unsettling. A darkly lit room creates shadows that might make you feel uneasy. When a character in a story hints darkly at secrets, they're being mysterious in a way that suggests danger or trouble.

Writers use darkly to set an atmosphere. A novel might be darkly comic, meaning it finds humor in sad or troubling situations. A movie scene might be filmed darkly to create tension and suspense. It captures feelings beyond simply lacking light: something seems shadowy, mysterious, or vaguely threatening, like when someone mutters darkly under their breath, suggesting they know something troubling they're not quite ready to say out loud.