burly

views updated May 11 2018

bur·ly / ˈbərlē/ • adj. (-li·er, -li·est) (of a person) large and strong; heavily built.DERIVATIVES: bur·li·ness n.

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English

burly

views updated May 18 2018

burly †comely, imposing, stately XIII; hence as a conventional epithet in ME. ‘noble’; massively built, corpulent XIV. ME. borli, burli, -lich, prob. :- OE. *būrliċ ‘fit for the bower’ = OHG. būrlīh exalted, excellent, stately; see BOWER1, -LY1.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD

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