BURLY Synonyms: 81 Similar and Opposite Words

burly

adjective

ˈbər-lē

Definition of burly

as in athletic

strongly and heavily built a burly delivery man brought the furniture

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of burly Emmett Doyle is a burly and bearded union carpenter and musician in Minneapolis who writes and performs folk music about the struggles of the working class. — Emily Witt, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026 This burly and battle-tested Chaminade-Madonna offensive line is led by three-star 6-foot-5 guard Devon Munnings, who is committed to Liberty. — Ethan Hanson, Daily News, 27 Aug. 2026 Taylor Lally is a blue-eyed, burly, bespectacled man, with a beard about halfway to the the full Duck Dynasty look. — Andrew Zucker, HollywoodReporter, 17 Aug. 2026 Fauci asked as a burly officer marched the man through the main door of the building and toward a police van, his hands zip-tied behind him. — Michael Collins, USA Today, 7 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for burly

Recent Examples of Synonyms for burly

Adjective

Gwath also spoke with athletic director DeWayne Peevy about the bigger-picture goals at DePaul, which has improved from three wins in 2023-24 — the season before Holtmann arrived — to 16-16 and 8-12 in the Big East last season.

— Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune, 29 Oct. 2026
But, the threat of recourse by the conference, along with a federal lawsuit filed by the SEC that very same week, saw the LSU athletic department make the decision to keep them off the team.

— Trey Wallace OutKick, FOXNews.com, 29 Oct. 2026

Definition of athletic

Adjective

Netanyahu, who has close ties with politically powerful ultra-Orthodox parties, has resisted attempts to end the exemptions.

— Josef Federman, Los Angeles Times, 26 Oct. 2026
And that includes his warning that TV news has been corrupted by the agendas of the powerful, wealthy billionaires who now control a large portion of the media.

— Michael Schneider, Variety, 26 Oct. 2026

Definition of powerful

Adjective

Gomez, who has a noticeably husky, raspy voice at times, answered a fan question about her vocal quirkiness during an Instagram Live session last December.

— Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 19 Oct. 2026
Her husky voice made Pugh, as an up-and-comer, seem wise beyond her years in breakout roles as a Machiavellian teenage bride in Lady Macbeth and an actor turned spy in The Little Drummer Girl.

— Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of husky

Adjective

Well, now meet its beefier cousin, the 2028 Mercedes-AMG GT SUV, an equally powerful, ultra-fast-charging electric people-hauler.

— Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 17 Oct. 2026
Steaks — particularly ribeye, sirloin and strip — brown faster with another layer of beefy flavor.

— Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Charlotte Observer, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of beefy

Adjective

The Brewers led the majors with 103 wins in the regular season and went 11-2 in the postseason, including seven comeback wins and a sweep of the mighty Dodgers in the NLCS.

— Rob Maaddi, Chicago Tribune, 29 Oct. 2026
Pumpkin seeds and walnuts are two small but mighty foods packed with blood sugar-lowering nutrients.

— Brittany Lubeck, Verywell Health, 28 Oct. 2026

Definition of mighty

Adjective

If the brawny stalker is a prison guard, maybe the skinny guy was, too?

— Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 15 Oct. 2026
After the last practices and meetings ahead of their Friday night lights, around seven or eight brawny, youthful teenagers walk into Top Speed for a primer session.

— PJ Green October 14, Kansas City Star, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of brawny

Adjective

New York — Down a dim, crooked hallway inside the Jay Street Lofts, a hulking brick relic of Brooklyn’s industrial past, Naomi Mishkin is conducting a radical fashion experiment.

— Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2026
Part boat, part plane, the hulking vessel, longer than a Boeing 747, rose to glide just above the water’s surface.

— IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of hulking

Adjective

The offensive line, which gave up three first-half sacks against Pittsburgh last weekend before settling in later in the game, will face a stout test in the Tar Heels’ defensive front.

— Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 29 Oct. 2026
However, while the Broncos’ defense has allowed 10 TDs and four field goals on 19 red-zone visits, the Bobcats aren’t quite as stout.

— Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of stout

Browse Nearby Words

burliness

burly

burn

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“Burly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/burly. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of burly

adjective

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