Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
dictionary thesaurus

colly

verb
col·​ly | \ ˈkä-lē \
collied; collying

Definition of colly

transitive verb

dialectal, chiefly British
: to blacken with or as if with soot

First Known Use of colly

1590, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for colly

alteration of Middle English colwen, from Old English *colgian, from Old English col coal

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about colly

Statistics for colly

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for colly

The first known use of colly was in 1590

See more words from the same year

More from Merriam-Webster on colly

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with colly

Comments on colly

What made you want to look up colly? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

Show Comments  Hide Comments 

WORD OF THE DAY

substantive

important, real, or meaningful

Get Word of the Day daily email!

Test Your Vocabulary

Homophone Quiz

  • three-bears-two-of-them-look-like-theyre-whispering-to-a-third-bear-who-looks-chuffed-to-be-the-center-of-attention
  • In order to judge how people felt, the senator's office hired a firm to take a ______.
Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

TAKE THE QUIZ
Add Diction

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games