welly

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See also: Welly

English

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Etymology 1

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Clipping of Wellington boot +‎ -y.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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welly (countable and uncountable, plural wellies)

  1. (countable, informal) Wellington boot.
    • 2009, Verse for Ages[1]:
      Dad has great big welly boots. For squishing in the mud; Two great big black welly boots: Thud, thud, thud.
  2. (uncountable, informal) Force on a pedal or increase to any fuel or power for an engine or motor.
  3. (uncountable, informal) Force or effort.
    Synonyms: back, elbow grease
    Come on! Put some welly into it!
Alternative forms
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Derived terms
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Translations
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Etymology 2

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From welne, a dialectal variant of well-nigh.

Adverb

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welly (not comparable)

  1. (obsolete, UK, Ireland, dialect) Almost; nearly.
    • 1853, Notes & Queries, volume 8, page 64:
      A person exceedingly hungry says, "I'm welly clem'd; I'm almost or well-nigh starved." It is the ordinary appeal of a beggar in the streets, when asking for food.
References
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  • Joseph Wright (1893) The English Dialect Dictionary, page 430