burly

  • 1Burly — Bur ly (b[^u]r l[y^]), a. [OE. burlich strong, excellent; perh. orig. fit for a lady s bower, hence handsome, manly, stout. Cf. {Bower}.] 1. Having a large, strong, or gross body; stout; lusty; now used chiefly of human beings, but formerly of… …

    The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • 2burly — index strong Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …

    Law dictionary

  • 3burly — c.1300, perhaps from O.E. burlic noble, stately, lit. bowerly, fit to frequent a lady s apartment (see BOWER (Cf. bower)). Sense descended through stout, and sturdy by 15c. to heavily built. Another theory connects the original word to O.H.G.… …

    Etymology dictionary

  • 4burly — husky, *muscular, brawny, athletic, sinewy Analogous words: corpulent, *fleshy, portly: bulky, substantial, *massive: *vigorous, lusty: *powerful, forceful, potent Antonyms: lanky, lank Contrasted words …

    New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • 5burly — [adj] husky able bodied, athletic, beefcake*, beefy*, big, brawny, bruising, bulky, gorillalike, hefty, hulking, hulky, hunk, muscular, portly, powerful, stocky, stout, strapping, strong, sturdy, thickset, well built; concept 773 Ant. light, slim …

    New thesaurus

  • 6burly — ► ADJECTIVE (burlier, burliest) ▪ (of a person) large and strong. DERIVATIVES burliness noun. ORIGIN probably from an Old English word meaning stately, fit for the bower …

    English terms dictionary

  • 7burly — [bʉr′lē] adj. burlier, burliest [ME borlich, excellent, noble, handsome, altered (? by assoc. with bour,BOWER1) < OE borlice, very, excellently] 1. big and strong; heavy and muscular 2. rough and hearty in manner; bluff burliness n …

    English World dictionary

  • 8burly — adjective a) Large, well built, and muscular. Hes a big, burly rugby player who works as a landscape gardener. b) Originating from the east end of London, England. An expressive term to mean something is good, awesome, amazing, unbelievable. e.g… …

    Wiktionary

  • 9burly — bur|ly [ˈbə:li US ˈbə:rli] adj [Date: 1300 1400; Origin: burly noble, impressive (13 17 centuries), perhaps from an unrecorded Old English borlic excellent ] a burly man is big and strong ▪ a burly policeman …

    Dictionary of contemporary English

  • 10burly — UK [ˈbɜː(r)lɪ] / US [ˈbɜrlɪ] adjective Word forms burly : adjective burly comparative burlier superlative burliest a burly man is fat and strong Derived word: burliness noun uncountable …

    English dictionary