woolly

1 of 2

adjective

wool·​ly ˈwu̇-lē 

variants or less commonly wooly

woollier; woolliest

1

a

: resembling wool

b

: of, relating to, or bearing wool

2

a

: lacking in clearness or sharpness of outline

a woolly TV picture

b

: marked by mental confusion

woolly thinking

3

: marked by boisterous roughness or lack of order or restraint

… where the West is still woolly.

—Paul Schubert

—used especially in the phrase wild and woolly

woollily

ˈwu̇-lə-lē 

adverb

woolliness noun

woolly

2 of 2

noun

wool·​ly ˈwu̇-lē 

variants or less commonly wooly or woolie

plural woollies also woolies

1

: a garment made from wool

especially : underclothing of knitted wool

—usually used in plural

2

Western US and Australia : sheep

Synonyms of woolly

Adjective

• shaggy
• hairy
• fuzzy

Examples of woolly in a Sentence

Adjective

the dog's woolly coat will require a lot of grooming

still had a water bed and a woolly coverlet on top of it

Noun

Get out your winter woollies.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The woolly devil was spotted by a volunteer for Big Bend National Park in Texas, when on a spring hike, Deb Manly stumbled across a small hairy-looking flower with two maroon florets sticking out like devil’s horns. —Luis Melecio-Zambrano, Mercury News, 18 Jan. 2026

As for accessories, many French girls have swapped their beloved cold winter accessory, the scarf, for a smaller option that leans more foulard than a woolly blanket. —Renée Reardin, InStyle, 17 Jan. 2026

Noun

Surprisingly, the team found no evidence of inbreeding or harmful mutations increasing over time, suggesting the woolly rhinoceros maintained a large, stable population right up until its sudden disappearance. —Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 14 Jan. 2026

Evolutionary biologists have long debated whether hunters or climate change ultimately doomed the woolly rhinoceros. —Evan Bush, NBC news, 14 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

circa 1865, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing woolly

• wild and woolly
• woolly adelgid
• woolly aphid
• woolly bear
• woolly-headed
• woolly mammoth
• woolly monkey
• woolly spider monkey

Rhymes for woolly

• bully
• fully
• pulley
• wooly

Kids Definition

woolly

1 of 2 adjective

wool·​ly

variants also wooly

ˈwu̇l-ē 

woollier; woolliest

1

a

: of, relating to, or bearing wool

woolly animals

b

: resembling wool

2

: marked by mental confusion

woolly thinking

3

: marked by roughness or disorder

the wild and woolly West

woolliness noun

woolly

2 of 2 noun

wool·​ly

variants also wooly or woolie

ˈwu̇l-ē

plural woollies

: a woolen garment

especially : underclothing of knitted wool

—usually used in plural