desperate (SERIOUS) adjective  very serious or bad; extreme 
Something must be done to save the industry from its current desperate plight.
They are living in desperate poverty.

Desperate can also mean extreme or very great. 
I'm in a desperate hurry.

desperately adverb 
Desperately means extremely or very much. 
He was desperately ill.

This page is cited from Cambridge Dictionaries Online. For the original, please visit
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=desperate*2+0