jolly

1 of 4

adjective

jol·​ly ˈjä-lē 

jollier; jolliest

1

a(1)

: full of high spirits : joyous

think no more, lad; laugh, be jolly

—A. E. Housman

(2)

: given to conviviality : jovial

a jolly companion

b

: expressing, suggesting, or inspiring lively happiness and good cheer : cheerful

jolly laughter

2

: extremely pleasant or agreeable : splendid

had a jolly time

jolly

2 of 4

adverb

: very

would … do as they were jolly well told

—John Stockbridge

jolly

3 of 4

noun

plural jollies

1

chiefly British : a good time : jollification

2

jollies plural : kicks

get their jollies by reenacting famous murders

—H. F. Waters

jolly

4 of 4

verb

jollied; jollying

intransitive verb

: to engage in good-natured banter

jollied and joked with sailors in the street

—Dixon Wecter

transitive verb

: to put or try to put in good humor especially to gain an end

try to pay for their entertainment by jollying us along

—S. E. White

Synonyms

Adjective

• blithe
• blithesome
• festive
• gay
• gleeful
• jocose
• jocular
• jocund
• jovial
• laughing
• merry
• mirthful
• sunny

Adverb

• achingly
• almighty
• archly
• awful
• awfully
• badly
• beastly
• blisteringly
• bone
• colossally
• corking
• cracking
• damn
• damned
• dang
• deadly
• desperately
• eminently
• enormously
• especially
• ever
• exceedingly
• exceeding
• extra
• extremely
• fabulously
• fantastically
• far
• fiercely
• filthy
• frightfully
• full
• greatly
• heavily
• highly
• hugely
• immensely
• incredibly
• intensely
• majorly
• mightily
• mighty
• monstrous [chiefly dialect]
• mortally
• most
• much
• particularly
• passing
• rattling
• real
• really
• right
• roaring
• roaringly
• seriously
• severely
• so
• sore
• sorely
• spanking
• specially
• stinking
• such
• super
• supremely
• surpassingly
• terribly
• that
• thumping
• too
• unco
• uncommonly
• vastly
• very
• vitally
• way
• whacking
• wicked
• wildly

Noun

• bang
• boot
• charge
• exhilaration
• frisson
• kick
• rush
• thrill
• titillation
• wallop

Verb

• banter
• chaff
• fool
• fun
• gag
• jape
• jest
• jive
• joke
• josh
• kid
• quip
• wisecrack
• yuk [slang]
• yuck

Choose the Right Synonym for jolly

merry, blithe, jocund, jovial, jolly mean showing high spirits or lightheartedness.

merry suggests cheerful, joyous, uninhibited enjoyment of frolic or festivity.

a merry group of revelers

blithe suggests carefree, innocent, or even heedless gaiety.

arrived late in his usual blithe way

jocund stresses elation and exhilaration of spirits.

singing, dancing, and jocund feasting

jovial suggests the stimulation of conviviality and good fellowship.

dinner put them in a jovial mood

jolly suggests high spirits expressed in laughing, bantering, and jesting.

our jolly host enlivened the party

Examples of jolly in a Sentence

Adjective

Our boss was a very jolly man, always laughing.

She had a jolly time at the party.

Adverb

“I've finished my assignment.” “Jolly good!”

She learned to be jolly careful in his presence.

Noun

a provocateur who gets his jollies from stirring up political controversy

Verb

spent their nights around the campfire good-naturedly jollying and telling scary stories

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Children are encouraged to dress up in costumes — usually representing characters in the story — to synergize with the jolly ambiance of the holiday. —The Arizona Republic, 23 Mar. 2024

But the best deal of all is night skiing with all the jolly locals with a Friday night ticket for just five bucks. —Todd Plummer, Travel + Leisure, 2 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective, Adverb, Noun, and Verb

Middle English joli, from Anglo-French jolif, from jol-, probably from Old Norse jōl midwinter festival — more at yule

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Adverb

1549, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1905, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1610, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Phrases Containing jolly

• jolly boat
• jolly well

Kids Definition

jolly

1 of 2 adjective

jol·​ly ˈjäl-ē 

jollier; jolliest

1

a

: merry sense 1, cheerful

b

: jovial

2

: very pleasant or agreeable : splendid

jolly

2 of 2 adverb

: very entry 2 sense 1

a jolly good time