belly

[ bel-ee ]

/ ˈbɛl i /

noun, plural bel·lies.

the front or under part of a vertebrate body from the breastbone to the pelvis, containing the abdominal viscera; the abdomen.

the stomach with its adjuncts.

appetite or capacity for food; gluttony.

the womb.

the inside or interior of anything: the belly of a ship.

a protuberant or bulging surface of anything: the belly of a flask.

Anatomy. the fleshy part of a muscle.

the front, inner, or under surface or part, as distinguished from the back.

the front surface of a violin or similar instrument.

a bulge on a vertical surface of fresh concrete.

the underpart of the fuselage of an airplane.

verb (used with object), bel·lied, bel·ly·ing.

to fill out; swell: Wind bellied the sails.

verb (used without object), bel·lied, bel·ly·ing.

to swell out: Sails bellying in the wind.

to crawl on one's belly: soldiers bellying through a rice paddy.

Verb Phrases

belly up, Informal.

to approach closely, especially until one is in physical contact: to belly up to a bar.
to curry favor from: Would you have gotten the promotion if you hadn't bellied up to the boss?

Idioms for belly

go/turn belly up, Informal. to come to an end; die; fail: After years of barely surviving on donations, the neighborhood social club finally went belly up.

Origin of belly

before 950; Middle English bely, Old English belig, belg bag, skin; cognate with German Balg, Gothic balgs, Old Norse belgr sack; akin to Welsh bol(a), boly, Irish bolg sack, belly, bellows, Serbo-Croatian blàzina, Latvian pabàlsts, Avestan barəziš-, Persian bālish cushion

OTHER WORDS FROM belly

bel·ly·like, adjective

Words nearby belly

bells and whistles, bells of ireland, bellwether, bellwood, bellwort, belly, belly bust, belly dance, belly flop, belly girt, belly landing

Example sentences from the Web for belly

She attends hip-hop and belly dance classes (known as Arabic dance in Iran) just to shine more at parties.

Iran’s Becoming a Footloose Nation as Dance Lessons Spread |IranWire |January 2, 2015 |DAILY BEAST
He holds them on his belly and looks at them with a magnifying glass, studying possible escape routes.

Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days |David Freeman |December 13, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
All you could see was the area from her belly button to her knees.

Will the Vatican Finally Hold This Kansas City Bishop Accountable? |Barbie Latza Nadeau |October 2, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
A major surgery requiring plastic mesh sewn into her belly saved her life.

Why Your Doctor Feels Like a 'Beaten Dog' |Daniela Drake |September 11, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

When you crush an insect, you have all these long worms uncoiling from the belly.

Vampires without Glitter or Girl Problems: Inside Guillermo del Toro’s ‘The Strain’ |Andrew Romano |July 14, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Metrodorus said, “That he had learnt Ἀληθως γαστρὶ χαρίζεσθαι, to give his belly just thanks for all his pleasures.”

Essays |Abraham Cowley
Above dark brown; throat and belly whitish; breast and sides brown.

Color Key to North American Birds |Frank M. Chapman
The rope is now drawn through the ring until it forms a tight loop, encircling the belly just in front of the hind limbs.

Special Report on Diseases of Cattle |U.S. Department of Agriculture
The piano in Bezuquet's shop mouldered away under a green fungus, and the Spanish flies dried upon it, belly up.

Tartarin of Tarascon |Alphonse Daudet
I dipped under the horse's belly, and got on the opposite side from him.

The Book of Enterprise and Adventure |Anonymous

British Dictionary definitions for belly

belly

/ (ˈbɛlɪ) /

noun plural -lies

the lower or front part of the body of a vertebrate, containing the intestines and other abdominal organs; abdomen Related adjective: ventral

the stomach, esp when regarded as the seat of gluttony

a part, line, or structure that bulges deeply the belly of a sail

the inside or interior cavity of something the belly of a ship

the front or inner part or underside of something

the surface of a stringed musical instrument over which the strings are stretched

the thick central part of certain muscles

Australian and NZ the wool from a sheep's belly

tanning the portion of a hide or skin on the underpart of an animal

archery the surface of the bow next to the bowstring

archaic the womb

go belly up informal to die, fail, or come to an end

verb -lies, -lying or -lied

to swell out or cause to swell out; bulge

Word Origin for belly

Old English belig; related to Old High German balg, Old Irish bolg sack, Sanskrit barhi chaff

Medical definitions for belly

belly

[ bĕl′ē ]

n.

abdomen

The stomach.

The womb; the uterus.

The bulging, central part of a muscle. venter

Idioms and Phrases with belly

belly

see go belly up.

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

belly

noun, plural bel·lies.

verb (used with object), bel·lied, bel·ly·ing.

verb (used without object), bel·lied, bel·ly·ing.

Verb Phrases

Idioms for belly

Origin of belly

OTHER WORDS FROM belly

Words nearby belly

Example sentences from the Web for belly

British Dictionary definitions for belly

noun plural -lies

verb -lies, -lying or -lied

Word Origin for belly

Medical definitions for belly

n.

Idioms and Phrases with belly

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

belly

noun, plural bel·lies.

verb (used with object), bel·lied, bel·ly·ing.

verb (used without object), bel·lied, bel·ly·ing.

Verb Phrases

Idioms for belly

Origin of belly

OTHER WORDS FROM belly

Words nearby belly

Words related to belly

Example sentences from the Web for belly

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []) .push({}); British Dictionary definitions for belly

noun plural -lies

verb -lies, -lying or -lied

Word Origin for belly

Medical definitions for belly

n.

Idioms and Phrases with belly

British Dictionary definitions for belly