belly

American  

[bel-ee] / ˈbɛl i /

noun

bellies plural

1. the front or under part of a vertebrate body from the breastbone to the pelvis, containing the abdominal viscera; the abdomen.

2. the stomach with its adjuncts.

3. appetite or capacity for food; gluttony.

4. the womb.

5. the inside or interior of anything.

   the belly of a ship.

6. a protuberant or bulging surface of anything.

   the belly of a flask.

7. Anatomy. the fleshy part of a muscle.

8. the front, inner, or under surface or part, as distinguished from the back.

9. the front surface of a violin or similar instrument.

10. a bulge on a vertical surface of fresh concrete.

11. the underpart of the fuselage of an airplane.

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verb (used with object)

bellied, bellying

1. to fill out; swell.

   Wind bellied the sails.

verb (used without object)

bellied, bellying

1. to swell out.

   Sails bellying in the wind.

2. to crawl on one's belly.

   soldiers bellying through a rice paddy.

verb phrase

1. belly up

   1. to approach closely, especially until one is in physical contact.

      to belly up to a bar.

   2. to curry favor from.

      Would you have gotten the promotion if you hadn't bellied up to the boss?

idioms

1. go / turn belly up, to come to an end; die; fail.

   After years of barely surviving on donations, the neighborhood social club finally went belly up.

belly British  

/ ˈbɛlɪ /

noun

1. the lower or front part of the body of a vertebrate, containing the intestines and other abdominal organs; abdomen

2. the stomach, esp when regarded as the seat of gluttony

3. a part, line, or structure that bulges deeply

   the belly of a sail

4. the inside or interior cavity of something

   the belly of a ship

5. the front or inner part or underside of something

6. the surface of a stringed musical instrument over which the strings are stretched

7. the thick central part of certain muscles

8. the wool from a sheep's belly

9. tanning the portion of a hide or skin on the underpart of an animal

10. archery the surface of the bow next to the bowstring

11. archaic the womb

12. informal to die, fail, or come to an end

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verb

1. to swell out or cause to swell out; bulge

belly More Idioms  

1. see go belly up.

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Other Word Forms

• bellylike
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of belly

before 950; Middle English bely, Old English belig, belg bag, skin; cognate with German Balg, Gothic balgs, Old Norse belgr sack; akin to Welsh bol ( a ), boly, Irish bolg sack, belly, bellows, Serbo-Croatian blàzina, Latvian pabàlsts, Avestan barəziš-, Persian bālish cushion

Explanation

Your belly is your stomach. If you have a belly ache, you have a pain in your abdomen. Santa Claus is famous for his jolly laugh and his large belly. The word belly is a more casual way to say "stomach" or "abdomen," just as your navel is informally called a "belly button." A less common way to use the word is as a verb meaning "to swell," which is actually the oldest meaning of belly, from the Old English belig, "bag," and a Germanic root meaning "to swell like a bag."

Example Sentences

In other words, the tails matter, not just the belly of the distribution.

From MarketWatch • May 22, 2026

"Our relationship with food now is it's just something you eat to feed your belly, but that's not what it is."

From BBC • May 9, 2026

Tracye also has a vivid memory of sitting on a bale of hay to watch her mother belly dance at Pleasure Faire.

From Los Angeles Times • May 7, 2026

A brown-haired girl in Texas, not yet 2 weeks old, bled around her belly button.

From Salon • May 7, 2026

My throat was parched, and my belly growled.

From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo

Related Words

• abdomen
• gut
• insides
• pelvis
• tank
• tummy