What does "jolly" mean?
A pleasure trip or excursion; especially, an expenses-paid or unnecessary one.
Jolly
/ˈd͡ʒɒli/ adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang
adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A pleasure trip or excursion; especially, an expenses-paid or unnecessary one.
- Grammar: jolly is listed as adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: merry, addled, animated, appease.
- Useful contrasts: barely, gloomy, marginally.
- Usage evidence: The weather's rather jolly today.
How to use "jolly"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "jolly" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "jolly" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "jolly" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "jolly" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "jolly" is acting as adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "merry" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "jolly", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A pleasure trip or excursion; especially, an expenses-paid or unnecessary one. UK, humorous, often
"If you know what it means to be a “fidlet” going for a “jolly” in your “doo”, then you are part of an exclusive club that speaks colloquial Antarctic English."
- 2 a yawl used by a ship's sailors for general work wordnet
- 3 A marine in the English navy. dated, slang
"I'm a Jolly — 'Er Majesty's Jolly — soldier an' sailor too!"
- 4 a happy party wordnet
- 5 A word of praise, or favorable notice. archaic, slang
"'We just need to chuck him a jolly.' 'I beg your pardon?' said Faber. 'Chuck a jolly... you know! Get people on the street talking about how amazing the show is! Tell them the tickets are sold out for the next two weeks.'"
Show 1 more definition
- 6 Ellipsis of jolly boat. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
"Indeed it is nearly impossible to conceive how the small jolly they were in could have escaped destruction for a single instant."
Verb
- 1 To amuse or divert. transitive
- 2 be silly or tease one another wordnet
- 3 To praise or talk up. archaic, informal, transitive
"I do not believe in 'jollying' and 'soft soaping' a man when his work is really bad."
Adjective
- 1 Full of merriment and high spirits; jovial; joyous; merry.
""Full jolly Knight he seemed […] full large of limb and every joint / He was, and cared not for God or man a point.""
- 2 Splendid, excellent, pleasant. colloquial, dated
"Jo silently notices how white and small her hand is and what a jolly servant she must be to wear such sparkling rings."
- 3 Drunk. informal
Adjective
- 1 full of or showing high-spirited merriment wordnet
Adverb
- 1 Very, extremely. British, dated
"It’s jolly hot in here, isn’t it?"
Adverb
- 1 to certain extent or degree wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A female given name.
- 2 A surname.
- 3 A place name:; An unincorporated community in Pike County, Georgia, United States.
- 4 A place name:; An unincorporated community in Newton County, Missouri, United States.
- 5 A place name:; A minor city in Clay County, Texas, United States.
Show 1 more definition
- 6 A place name:; Alternative spelling of Jouli, Uttar Pradesh, India. alt-of, alternative
Antonyms
Example
"The weather's rather jolly today."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "jolly"?
Common synonyms include: merry, addled, animated, appease, banter, banter.
How do you use "jolly" in a sentence?
The weather's rather jolly today.
How do you pronounce "jolly"?
Pronounced /ˈd͡ʒɒli/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English joli, jolif (“merry, cheerful”), from Old French joli, jolif (“merry, joyful”). For the loss of final -f in English, compare tardy, hasty, hussy, etc. It is uncertain whether the Old French word is from Old Norse jól ("a midwinter feast, Yule", hence "fest-ive"), in which case, equivalent to yule + -ive, compare Dutch jolig (“happy, festive, frolicsome, jolly”), West Frisian joelich, joalich (“merry, jolly”), Middle High German jœlich (“hooting, jubilant”). Alternatively, the Old French adjective has been conjectured to derive from a Vulgar Latin *gaudivus (from Latin gaudeō, more at joy), in which case it would require Early Old French ⟨d⟩ /ð/ to irregularly become ⟨l⟩ in jolif rather than being dropped, which is the usual case (alternatively, /l/ may be a hiatus filler inserted into expected *joïf). A possible parallel of ⟨d⟩ to ⟨l⟩ can be seen in the French name Valois, according to one hypothesis from Latin Vadensis, though this origin is itself uncertain and disputed.
Etymology 2
* Cognate to the French name Jolie. It derives from the Old French word joli (merriness). * In Punjab (India) it is a corruption of the word jalli.