as in surplus
the state or an instance of going beyond what is usual, proper, or needed
a bellyful of complaints about the new security procedures
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Recent Examples of bellyful
At dawn, the farmers loaded the trucks with the land’s bellyful of flowers and headed out to sell to the neighboring towns.
—
Literary Hub, 17 Oct. 2025
The apex of that transformation arrived with the N.F.L. planting this year’s event in Las Vegas, where the prevailing ethos might well be that a bellyful of anything is barely enough.
—Billy Witz, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2024
Who wants to talk of destruction with a bellyful of ribs?
—John Kass, chicagotribune.com, 2 July 2019
Go instead for the exquisite acting, the splendiferous set — and a bellyful of laughs.
—Joanne Engelhardt, The Mercury News, 13 June 2019
The ecologist gets his data and the caiman is none the worse for wear, save for losing a bellyful of rotting flesh.
—Jason Bittel, Smithsonian, 11 Oct. 2017
On its way to skim the lake and grab a bellyful of water to drop on a nearby forest fire, a CL-215—also known as Scooper—gave him a nice little haircut.
—Eric Limer, Popular Mechanics, 15 Aug. 2016
Literary Hub, 17 Oct. 2025
The apex of that transformation arrived with the N.F.L. planting this year’s event in Las Vegas, where the prevailing ethos might well be that a bellyful of anything is barely enough.
—Billy Witz, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2024
Who wants to talk of destruction with a bellyful of ribs?
—John Kass, chicagotribune.com, 2 July 2019
Go instead for the exquisite acting, the splendiferous set — and a bellyful of laughs.
—Joanne Engelhardt, The Mercury News, 13 June 2019
The ecologist gets his data and the caiman is none the worse for wear, save for losing a bellyful of rotting flesh.
—Jason Bittel, Smithsonian, 11 Oct. 2017
On its way to skim the lake and grab a bellyful of water to drop on a nearby forest fire, a CL-215—also known as Scooper—gave him a nice little haircut.
—Eric Limer, Popular Mechanics, 15 Aug. 2016
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bellyful
Noun
-
Will the Rockies, who have a surplus of young outfielders, make a spring training trade?—
Patrick Saunders,
Denver Post,
10 Mar. 2026
-
The law aims to dramatically reduce landfill waste — especially organic waste — and requires many businesses to donate edible surplus food to organizations like Feeding San Diego.—
Patty Oconnor,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Ellison acquired Weiss’s the Free Press, a centrist digital news site that often targets excesses of the political left and is staunchly pro-Israel.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Mar. 2026
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Stomach-turning excesses by Immigration and Customs Enforcement have turned many Americans’ abstract political preference into something uncomfortably concrete.—
George F. Will,
Washington Post,
13 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bellyful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bellyful. Accessed 16 Mar. 2026.
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