— jollily , adv. — jolliness , n.
/jol"ee/ , adj., jollier, jolliest , v. , jollied, jollying , n. , pl. jollies , adv.
adj.
1. in good spirits; gay; merry: In a moment he was as jolly as ever.
2. cheerfully festive or convivial: a jolly party.
3. joyous; happy: Christmas is a jolly season.
4. Chiefly Brit. Informal. delightful; charming.
5. Brit.
a. Informal. great; thorough: a jolly blunderer.
b. Slang. slightly drunk; tipsy.
v.t.
6. Informal. to talk or act agreeably to (a person) in order to keep that person in good humor, esp. in the hope of gaining something (usually followed by along ): They jollied him along until the job was done.
v.i.
7. Informal. to jolly a person; josh; kid.
n.
8. Informal. the practice or an instance of jollying a person.
9. Usually, jollies . Informal. pleasurable excitement, esp. from or as if from something forbidden or improper; thrills; kicks: He gets his jollies from watching horror movies.
adv.
10. Brit. Informal. extremely; very: He'll jolly well do as he's told.
[ 1275-1325; ME joli, jolif jol- (prob. jol YULE) + -if -IVE ]
Syn. 1-3. glad, spirited, jovial, sportive, playful. See gay .
Ant. 1-3. gloomy, melancholy.