roly-poly

[roh-lee-poh-lee, -poh-lee]

adjective

1. short and plumply round, as a person or a young animal.

   Synonyms: pudgy, rotund, fat
   Antonyms: scrawny

noun

plural

roly-polies 

1. a roly-poly person or thing.

2. Chiefly British.,  a sheet of biscuit dough spread with jam, fruit, or the like, rolled up and steamed or baked.

roly-poly

/ ˈrəʊlɪˈpəʊlɪ /

adjective

1. plump, buxom, or rotund

noun

1. a strip of suet pastry spread with jam, fruit, or a savoury mixture, rolled up, and baked or steamed as a pudding

2. a plump, buxom, or rotund person

3. an informal name for tumbleweed

Word History and Origins

Origin of roly-poly¹

1595–1605; earlier rowle powle, rowly-powly worthless fellow, game involving rolling balls, rhyming compound based on roll (v.); for second element poll ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of roly-poly¹

C17: apparently by reduplication from roly , from _roll

Example Sentences

“It was a strange-looking car with a roly-poly exterior, but it had a lot of space inside and there was nothing in South Korea that could compete with it in its segment,” he said.

From Los Angeles Times

"We had tapioca, semolina, treacle sponge pudding, as well as jam roly-poly, cake with icing and sprinkles, chocolate cake and pink custard, and more."

From BBC

“Dumplings, yumplings, roly-poly dumplings! Eat you, eat you, we will eat you UP!”

From Literature

The roly-poly rodents chew up and move around large amounts of plant material, damming streams to create ponds where they can hide from predators.

From Los Angeles Times

A distinctive style, star-studded voice cast and the winning Jack Black voicing Po, the roly-poly, dumpling-appreciating Dragon Warrior, is usually a recipe for success, or at least it has been.

From Los Angeles Times