1
as in merry
indicative of or marked by high spirits or good humor
an especially jolly crowd of well-wishers at their wedding reception
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in pleasant
giving pleasure or contentment to the mind or senses
we always have a jolly time at their seaside cottage
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in very
to a great degree
I jolly well agree that you did the right thing has become a jolly careful driver since his recent accident
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to joke
to make jokes
spent their nights around the campfire good-naturedly jollying and telling scary stories
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of jolly
Hugh McIntyre, Forbes, 4 Jan. 2025
Winter break is a jolly time of the year for many children.
—Holly Garcia, Parents, 31 Dec. 2024
Mona Awad, New Yorker, 20 July 2025
The first was a large, jolly woman with a wide face and a long tongue who lived with her older sister, who was also without husband.
—Literary Hub, 2 July 2025
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
See All Example Sentences for jolly
Adjective
The same jolly collection also returns to the Top Streaming Albums chart for another year.
—Hugh McIntyre, Forbes, 4 Jan. 2025
Winter break is a jolly time of the year for many children.
—Holly Garcia, Parents, 31 Dec. 2024
Adverb
On her laptop, a video played of a jolly British woman trying on all the yellow items in her closet—saffron, amber, daffodil, canary, flax.
—Mona Awad, New Yorker, 20 July 2025
The first was a large, jolly woman with a wide face and a long tongue who lived with her older sister, who was also without husband.
—Literary Hub, 2 July 2025
Verb
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
See All Example Sentences for jolly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jolly
Adjective
-
In Don’t Get High, an alpha dork and her merry gang of dweebs start an anti-drug group at their high school to make friends and influence people.—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
12 Sep. 2025
-
From a massive 9-foot fir to a charming 3-foot tabletop tree, score up to 58% off a one-time buy that’ll last for years of merry memories.—
Mariana Best,
Better Homes & Gardens,
25 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Room for two, a supple ride, a gorgeous view over a curved hood, perfect flow of air up and over the windshield and cockpit with virtually no backsplash to disrupt pleasant conversation, and the ability at any time to experience a rush of power and speed when the moment calls.—
Mark Ewing,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025
-
Enfield is a pleasant, unremarkable suburb of north London.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
14 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
The player known as Dan the Man during his playing days remains very active in a lot of different arenas.—
Bruce Y. Lee,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
-
Some like to get to the airport very early, with time for a full picnic, while others are dashing in at the last minute while downing a protein bar.—
Jessie Beck,
AFAR Media,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Coon also joked that with so much time adapting the elaborate costumes, her daughter, born in the summer of 2021, thought that her mom's on-set dresser, Brian, was her father.—
Avalon Hester,
PEOPLE,
12 Sep. 2025
-
My wife jokes about the cat having foiled our murder plot yet again.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Small business owners, who rely on social media to promote and sell their products, were especially worried with a busy festive season looming.—
Nir Kshetri,
The Conversation,
14 Sep. 2025
-
To get the season off to a festive start, the San Jose Chamber of Commerce, which Opera San Jose joined this year, hosted a ribbon-cutting Friday afternoon at the California Theatre.—
Sal Pizarro,
Mercury News,
13 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
From here on out, Belly’s experience in Paris becomes much more delightful.—
Kathleen Walsh,
Vulture,
10 Sep. 2025
-
The conversation — which delivered plenty of delightful outbursts from the over-the-top Tonioli — took a deep dive into a Season 7 emergency that sent Julianne Hough to the ER, and the memorable night protestors stormed the DWTS stage.—
Claire Franken,
TVLine,
9 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
Or consider the extremely rapid development of vaccines during the recent COVID pandemic.—
Alan Lightman
September 12,
Literary Hub,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Kirk has risen in popularity over the years for his extremely polarizing takes, which resulted in a heavy split among reactions to his passing.—
Regina Cho,
VIBE.com,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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His commercials have graced Southwest Ohio TVs over the last two decades and inspired Reddit posts, Halloween costumes and even a surprisingly enjoyable lo-fi musical remix on YouTube.—
Otto Rabe,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
11 Sep. 2025
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The best and most enjoyable habit to maintain a healthy, thriving garden is a daily garden walk.—
Andy Wilcox,
Better Homes & Gardens,
11 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Jolly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jolly. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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