¹jelly

noun jel·ly \ˈje-lē\

: a sweet and soft food made by boiling sugar and fruit juice until it is thick

: a fruit-flavored dessert made with gelatin

: a food made from meat juices and gelatin

plural jellies

Full Definition of JELLY

: a soft somewhat elastic food product made usually with gelatin or pectin; especially : a fruit product made by boiling sugar and the juice of fruit

: a substance resembling jelly in consistency

: a state of fear or irresolution

: a shapeless structureless mass : pulp

— jel·ly·like \-ˌlīk\ adjective

See jelly defined for English-language learners

See jelly defined for kids

Origin of JELLY

Middle English gelly, from Anglo-French gelee, from feminine of gelé, past participle of geler to freeze, congeal, from Latin gelare — more at cold

First Known Use: 14th century

Rhymes with JELLY

belly, Delhi, deli, felly, Pelly, shelly, smelly, tele, telly, wellie

²jelly

verb

jel·liedjel·ly·ing

Definition of JELLY

intransitive verb

: jell

: to make jelly

transitive verb

: to bring to the consistency of jelly

First Known Use of JELLY

1590

Related to JELLY

Synonyms: clot, congeal, gel, gelate, gelatinize, jell, coagulate, set

Rhymes with JELLY

belly

JELLYLIKE Defined for Kids

jelly

noun jel·ly \ˈje-lē\

plural jellies

Definition of JELLY for Kids

: a soft springy food made from fruit juice boiled with sugar, from meat juices, or from gelatin

— jel·ly·like \-ˌlīk\ adjective

Medical Dictionary

jelly

noun jel·ly \ˈjel-ē\

plural jellies

Medical Definition of JELLY

: a soft somewhat elastic food product made usually with gelatin or pectin; especially : a fruit product made by boiling sugar and the juice of fruit

: a substance resembling jelly in consistency: as a : a transparent elastic gel b : a semisolid medicated or cosmetic preparation often having a gum base and usually intended for local application <ephedrine jelly> c : a jellylike preparation used in electrocardiography to obtain better conduction of electricity <electrode jelly>