jolly

[ jol-ee ]

/ ˈdʒɒl i /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR jolly ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, jol·li·er, jol·li·est.

in good spirits; lively; merry: In a moment he was as jolly as ever.

cheerfully festive or convivial: a jolly party.

joyous; happy: Christmas is a jolly season.

Chiefly British Informal. delightful; charming.

British.

Informal. great; thorough: a jolly blunderer.
Slang. slightly drunk; tipsy.

verb (used with object), jol·lied, jol·ly·ing.

Informal. to talk or act agreeably to (a person) in order to keep that person in good humor, especially in the hope of gaining something (usually followed by along): They jollied him along until the job was done.

verb (used without object), jol·lied, jol·ly·ing.

Informal. to jolly a person; josh; kid.

noun, plural jol·lies.

Informal. the practice or an instance of jollying a person.

Usually jollies. Informal. pleasurable excitement, especially from or as if from something forbidden or improper; thrills; kicks: He gets his jollies from watching horror movies.

adverb

British Informal. extremely; very: He'll jolly well do as he's told.

Nearby words

Origin of jolly

1275–1325; Middle English joli, jolif < Old French, equivalent to jol- (probably < Old Norse jōl yule) + -if -ive

SYNONYMS FOR jolly

1–3. glad, spirited, jovial, sportive, playful.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR jolly ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR jolly

1–3. gloomy, melancholy.

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Related formsjol·li·ly, adverbjol·li·ness, nounun·jol·ly, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for jolly

The incident sparked his belief in Santa, but he would have to wait nearly two decades before dressing up as Jolly St. Nick.
Kerry Bentivolio: The Congressman Who Believes in Santa Claus|Ben Jacobs|December 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Like Jolly, most of the women raced other motorized vehicles before making it into Monster Jam.
The Moms of Monster Jam Drive Trucks, Buck Macho Culture|Eliza Krigman|November 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Jolly somehow finds the time to also manage a restaurant and help kids who have Autism and Down syndrome ride horses.
The Moms of Monster Jam Drive Trucks, Buck Macho Culture|Eliza Krigman|November 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Jolly, who entered the racing world when she was eight years old, remembers being taunted as a kid.
The Moms of Monster Jam Drive Trucks, Buck Macho Culture|Eliza Krigman|November 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Jolly and Creten, who are both married to Monster Jam drivers (Neil Elliott and Jimmy Creten, respectively), have kids.
The Moms of Monster Jam Drive Trucks, Buck Macho Culture|Eliza Krigman|November 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It was his nature to be happy and jolly; he could not help radiating sunshine all the time.
The Boy Scouts of the Naval Reserve|Robert Shaler
Toward the close of the packing season there are jolly times on the plantation.
Cotton, Its Progress from the Field to the Needle|Anonymous
Burns's famous "Jolly Beggars" have all had their portraits drawn by Cruikshank.
George Cruikshank|William Makepeace Thackeray
She went to jolly parties, and all the boys wanted to dance with her.
Shaun O'Day of Ireland|Madeline Brandeis
Not studio parties or cabarets, but jolly outdoor things like we used to do at home.
Quin|Alice Hegan Rice

British Dictionary definitions for jolly

jolly

/ (ˈdʒɒlɪ) /

adjective -lier or -liest

full of good humour; jovial

having or provoking gaiety and merrymaking; festive

greatly enjoyable; pleasing

adverb

British (intensifier)you're jolly nice

verb -lies, -lying or -lied (tr) informal

(often foll by up or along) to try to make or keep (someone) cheerful

to make goodnatured fun of

noun

informal, mainly British a festivity or celebration

informal, mainly British a trip, esp one made for pleasure by a public official or committee at public expense

British slang a Royal Marine

Derived Formsjolliness, noun

Word Origin for jolly

C14: from Old French jolif, probably from Old Norse jōl yule

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 jolly

jolly

adj.

c.1300 (late 13c. as a surname), from Old French jolif "festive, merry, amorous, pretty" (12c.) of uncertain origin (cf. Italian giulivo "merry, pleasant").

Perhaps a Germanic loan-word from a source akin to Old Norse jol "a winter feast" (see yule), or from Latin gaudere "to rejoice," from PIE *gau- "to rejoice" (see joy). For loss of -f, cf. tardy, hasty. Related: Jollily; jolliness.

jolly

adjective, jol·li·er, jol·li·est.

verb (used with object), jol·lied, jol·ly·ing.

verb (used without object), jol·lied, jol·ly·ing.

noun, plural jol·lies.

adverb

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Origin of jolly

Examples from the Web for jolly

jolly

adjective -lier or -liest

adverb

verb -lies, -lying or -lied (tr) informal

noun

Word Origin for jolly

jolly