belly

1 of 2

noun

bel·​ly ˈbe-lē 

plural bellies

1

a

: abdomen sense 1a

also : potbelly sense 1

b

: the stomach and its adjuncts

c

: the undersurface of an animal's body

also : hide from this part

d

: womb, uterus

2

a

: an internal cavity : interior

b

: a central place where something is most prevalent, concentrated, or deeply ingrained

… he became the hottest songwriter in Nashville, an antiauthoritarian smack-dab in the belly of the establishment.

—Tony Scherman

—often used in the phrase the belly of the beast to refer especially to a dangerous or hostile place or situation

Meanwhile, the very best bodies of America are in prison, pumping iron in the belly of the beast.

—Robert Lipsyte

3

: appetite for food

4

: a surface or object curved or rounded like a human belly

5

a

: the enlarged fleshy body of a muscle

b

: the part of a sail that swells out when filled with wind

6

: gut sense 4

belly

2 of 2

verb

bellied; bellying

transitive verb

: to cause to swell or fill out

wind bellying the sails

intransitive verb

1

: swell, fill

2

a

: to slide or crawl on one's belly

b

: belly-land

Synonyms

Noun

• stomach
• hunger
• appetite
• starvation

Verb

• protrude
• poke
• bulge

Examples of belly in a Sentence

Noun

He got down on his belly to crawl.

They slid down the snowy hill on their bellies.

a gray squirrel with a white belly

the belly of an airplane

the belly of a ship

Verb

the sails slowly bellied as the wind picked up

recruits were forced to belly over the obstacle course under simulated enemy fire

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

If a crash is unavoidable, airbags deploy from the nose, belly, and tail in under two seconds. —Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 16 Sep. 2025

The pictures show the wide-eyed feline in a series of irresistible poses—lying on her back exposing her soft belly, sitting upright with her bright blue eyes gleaming, and playfully posing for the camera. —Lucy Notarantonio, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Sep. 2025

Leader delights in offering up her belly for rubs or kissing the faces of new friends. —Jen Reeder, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025

The 10 Courts of Hell were once located in the belly of a giant dragon that visitors would ride boats into, passing scenes from the underworld along the way. —Iona Brannon, Travel + Leisure, 14 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English bely bellows, belly, from Old English belg bag, skin; akin to Old High German balg bag, skin, Old English blāwan to blow — more at blow entry 1

Verb

verbal derivative of belly entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1606, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Phrases Containing belly

• beer belly
• belly button
• belly dance
• belly flop
• belly-land
• belly laugh
• belly up
• belly up to
• Delhi belly
• go belly-up
• pork belly

Rhymes for belly

• deli
• felly
• jelly
• kellie
• melly
• nellie
• nelly
• shelly
• skelly
• smellie
• smelly
• tele

Kids Definition

belly

1 of 2 noun

bel·​ly ˈbel-ē 

plural bellies

1

a

: abdomen sense 1

b

: the undersurface of an animal's body

also : hide from this part

c

: stomach entry 1 sense 1a

2

: an internal cavity : interior

3

: a curved or rounded surface or object

the belly of an airplane

belly

2 of 2 verb

bellied; bellying

: to swell or bulge out

Medical Definition

belly

noun

bel·​ly ˈbel-ē 

plural bellies

1

a

: abdomen sense 1a

b

: the undersurface of an animal's body

c

: womb, uterus

d

: the stomach and its adjuncts

2

: the enlarged fleshy body of a muscle