jolly
verb
jollied; jollying
: to engage in good-natured banter
… jollied and joked with sailors in the street.—
Dixon Wecter
Dixon Wecter
: to put or try to put in good humor especially to gain an end
… try to pay for their entertainment by jollying us along.—Stewart Edward White
Stewart Edward WhiteExamples of jolly in a Sentence
spent their nights around the campfire good-naturedly jollying and telling scary stories
Recent Examples on the Web
This isn’t a report by the fun police: Twelfth Night is bursting with life and humor and should by no means be a moody slog, but Ali’s production is too intent on jollying us along.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 22 Aug. 2025
Director Nisha Ganatra jollies it along, with editor Eleanor Infante making as much rhythmic sense of the mix-ups and physical craziness as possible.
—Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 6 Aug. 2025
As to the political will needed to jolly the process along, and arrange payment for those parts of the programme that will not pay for themselves, this can push both ways.
—The Economist, 21 Sep. 2019
So Watt sets out to convince them that the real killer is Peter Manuel by — wait for it! — taking him out on a bender and jollying him into a confession.
—Marilyn Stasio, New York Times, 19 May 2017
See All Example Sentences for jolly
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Sara Holdren, Vulture, 22 Aug. 2025
Director Nisha Ganatra jollies it along, with editor Eleanor Infante making as much rhythmic sense of the mix-ups and physical craziness as possible.
—Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 6 Aug. 2025
As to the political will needed to jolly the process along, and arrange payment for those parts of the programme that will not pay for themselves, this can push both ways.
—The Economist, 21 Sep. 2019
So Watt sets out to convince them that the real killer is Peter Manuel by — wait for it! — taking him out on a bender and jollying him into a confession.
—Marilyn Stasio, New York Times, 19 May 2017
See All Example Sentences for jolly
Cite this Entry
“Jolly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jolly. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
jolly
2 of 2 adverb
: very entry 2 sense 1
a jolly good time
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