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jollity

[jol-i-tee]
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noun, plural jol·li·ties.
  1. jolly or merry mood, condition, or activity; gaiety.
  2. jollities, jolly festivities.
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Origin of jollity

1250–1300; Middle English jolite < Old French, equivalent to joli(f) gay (see jolly) + -te -ty2

Synonyms

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1. See mirth.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for jollity

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • O the music, the lightness, the jollity of the zarzuelas of my father's time!

  • The seriousness of age takes the place of the jollity of youth.

    Laws

    Plato

  • The general taste is for jollity, bright colour, cheerful music.

    Recollections

    David Christie Murray

  • He was in a mood of jollity, and watched Elfride down the hill with a smile.

  • When this period of jollity is ended, the freshman must declare his views.

    Oxford

    Andrew Lang

British Dictionary definitions for jollity

jollity

noun plural -ties
  1. the condition of being jolly
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for jollity

n.

c.1300, jolyfte, iolite, from Old French jolivete "gaity, cheerfulness; amorous passion; life of pleasure," from jolif (see jolly).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper