Dictionary.com

merry

[ mer-ee ]
/ ˈmɛr i /
Save This Word!

adjective, mer·ri·er, mer·ri·est.
full of cheerfulness or gaiety; joyous in disposition or spirit: a merry little man.
laughingly happy; mirthful; festively joyous; hilarious: a merry time at the party.
Archaic. causing happiness; pleasant; delightful.
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?

Idioms about merry

    make merry, Older Use.
    1. to be happy or festive: The New Year's revelers were making merry in the ballroom.
    2. to make fun of; ridicule: The unthinking children made merry of the boy who had no shoes.

Origin of merry

First recorded before 900; Middle English meri(e),myrie, murie, Old English myr(i)ge, mer(i)ge “pleasant, delightful”

how to pronounce merry

See Mary.

OTHER WORDS FROM merry

Other definitions for merry (2 of 2)

Merry
[ mer-ee ]
/ ˈmɛr i /

noun
a female given name.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use merry in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for merry

merry
/ (ˈmɛrɪ) /

adjective -rier or -riest
cheerful; jolly
very funny; hilarious
British informal slightly drunk
archaic delightful
make merry to revel; be festive
play merry hell with informal to disturb greatly; disrupt

Derived forms of merry

merrily, adverbmerriness, noun

Word Origin for merry

Old English merige agreeable
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
FEEDBACK