burly

adjective

bur·​ly ˈbər-lē How to pronounce burly (audio)
burlier; burliest
: strongly and heavily built : husky
a burly man
burlily adverb
burliness noun

Examples of burly in a Sentence

a burly delivery man brought the furniture
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Two coppers in an unmarked car, cheery, burly, aftershave competing, picked me up from my home and drove me to a police station a hundred and fifty-odd miles away. Sarah Beckwith, New Yorker, 26 May 2025 This burly mat is 4 inches thick and weighs 4 pounds, offering plenty of cushioning and support. Scott Gilbertson, Wired News, 22 May 2025 Replacing the burly southpaw, whose 30th birthday is Wednesday, won’t be easy. Dan Schlossberg, Forbes.com, 19 May 2025 To complement those two, the Thunder are using the burly Jaylin Williams to come in and push him around physically. Tony Jones, New York Times, 12 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for burly

Word History

Etymology

Middle English

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of burly was in the 13th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Burly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/burly. Accessed 5 Jun. 2025.

Kids Definition

burly

adjective
bur·​ly ˈbər-lē How to pronounce burly (audio)
burlier; burliest
: strongly and heavily built
a burly man
burliness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on burly

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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