jolly

See also: Jolly

English

Etymology

From Middle English joli, jolif (“merry, cheerful”), from Old French joli, jolif (“merry, joyful”) It is uncertain whether the Old French word is from Old Norse jól ("a midwinter feast, Yule", hence "fest-ive") , in which case, equivalent to yule +‎ -ive, compare Dutch jolig (“happy, festive, frolicsome, jolly”); or ultimately from Latin gaudeō (see etymology at joy). For the loss of final -f compare tardy, hasty, hussy, etc.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒɒli/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒɑli/

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɒli
• Hyphenation: jol‧ly

Adjective

jolly (comparative jollier, superlative jolliest)

1. Full of merriment and high spirits; jovial; joyous; merry.
   • 1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book I, Canto II”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:

     "Full jolly Knight he seemed […] full large of limb and every joint / He was, and cared not for God or man a point."

   • 1815, William Wordsworth, "Hart-Leap Well," Part Second:

     "A jolly place," said he, "in times of old! / But something ails it now: the spot is curst. ..."

   • 1819, Washington Irving, “The Stage Coach”, in The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.:

     […] he is swelled into jolly dimensions by frequent potations of malt liquors […]

2. (colloquial, dated) Splendid, excellent, pleasant.
   • 1852 March – 1853 September, Charles Dickens, chapter 16, in Bleak House, London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1853, →OCLC:

     Jo silently notices how white and small her hand is and what a jolly servant she must be to wear such sparkling rings.

3. (informal) drunk

Translations

jovial — see jovial

Noun

jolly (plural jollies)

1. (UK, dated, often humorous) A pleasure trip or excursion.
2. (slang, dated) A marine in the English navy.

   Synonym: joey

   • 1896, Rudyard Kipling, Soldier an' Sailor Too:

     I'm a Jolly — 'Er Majesty's Jolly — soldier an' sailor too!

Adverb

jolly (comparative more jolly, superlative most jolly)

1. (Britain, dated) very, extremely

   it’s jolly hot in here, isn’t it?

   • 1991, Stephen Fry, chapter III, in The Liar, London: William Heinemann, →ISBN, page 26:

     Adrian thought it worth while to try out his new slang. ‘I say, you fellows, here's a rum go. Old Biffo was jolly odd this morning. He gave me a lot of pi-jaw about slacking and then invited me to tea. No rotting! He did really.’

Verb

jolly (third-person singular simple present jollies, present participle jollying, simple past and past participle jollied)

1. (transitive) To amuse or divert.

Translations

To amuse or divert

• Bulgarian: развеселявам (bg) (razveseljavam)

• Czech: škádlit (cs) impf, bavit (cs) impf, dělat si legraci impf

Derived terms

terms derived from all parts of speech

• brown jolly
• jollify
• jollily
• jolliness
• jollity
• jolly along
• jolly boat
• jolly boy
• jolly D
• jolly good show
• jolly-hockey-sticks
• Jolly Roger
• jolly well

 

References

• Jolly in the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica, vol. 15, p. 495.

Italian

Etymology

Borrowed from English jolly joker, an older name for the joker card in a deck of cards.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒɔl.li/
• Rhymes: -ɔlli

Noun

jolly m (invariable)

1. (card games) joker
2. wild card

See also

Playing cards in Italian · carte da gioco (layout · text)
asso	due	tre	quattro	cinque	sei	sette
otto	nove	dieci	fante	donna, regina	re	jolly, joker, matta