bodily

1 of 2

adjective

bodi·​ly ˈbä-də-lē 

1

: having a body : physical

2

: of or relating to the body

bodily comfort

bodily organs

bodily

2 of 2

adverb

1

a

: in the flesh

b

: in a manner that involves physically moving someone's body

The blast lifted him bodily into the air.

Jerry Wexler called him a "parasite" and threw him bodily out of his office.

—Jack Kroll

2

: as a whole : altogether

Synonyms of bodily

Adjective

• physical

Examples of bodily in a Sentence

Adjective

The victim suffered serious bodily injury.

the old man suffered from a number of bodily ailments

Adverb

The blast lifted him bodily into the air.

The house will have to be moved bodily to the new site.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

He was booked into jail for assault with a deadly weapon likely to produce great bodily injury, felony vandalism, and violation of his post-release community supervision terms. —Brandon Downs, CBS News, 8 Feb. 2026

Connecticut should continue to fortify its legal framework so that care decisions remain between patients, families, and medical professionals — not politicians or out-of-state actors — and so that the right to bodily autonomy is grounded as securely as possible in state law. —Matthew Blinstrubas, Hartford Courant, 7 Feb. 2026

Adverb

There is also growing interest in embodied cognition, the idea that bodily states influence mental processes. —Atom Sarkar, The Conversation, 27 Jan. 2026

There’s a bodily reverberating that is beyond control. —Bettina Funcke, Artforum, 7 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb

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

Rhymes for bodily

• caudally

Kids Definition

bodily

1 of 2 adjective

bodi·​ly ˈbäd-ᵊl-ē 

: of or relating to the body : physical

bodily

2 of 2 adverb

1

: in the flesh : by the body

removed them bodily

2

: as a whole : entirely

Medical Definition

bodily

adjective

bodi·​ly ˈbäd-ᵊl-ē 

: of or relating to the body

bodily organs