jelly

1 of 3

noun

jel·​ly ˈje-lē 

plural jellies

1

: 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

2

: a substance resembling jelly in consistency

3

: jellyfish

4

: a state of fear or irresolution

5

: a shapeless structureless mass : pulp

jellylike

ˈjē-lē-ˌlīk 

adjective

jelly

2 of 3

verb

jellied; jellying

intransitive verb

1

: jell

2

: to make jelly

transitive verb

: to bring to the consistency of jelly

jelly

3 of 3

adjective

slang

: jealous

"I'm jelly," declared Jon Osborne of Pardi's white, sparkly jacket, complete with flowers …

—Taylor Weatherby

Synonyms

Verb

• clot
• coagulate
• congeal
• gel
• gelate
• gelatinize
• jell
• set

Examples of jelly in a Sentence

Noun

a selection of different jellies and jams

He spread some jelly on his toast.

a jar of grape jelly

a peanut butter and jelly sandwich

a meat glaze made with stock and jelly

Verb

this fruit juice is taking longer to jelly than I expected

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Trademark documents indicated the name would apply to online and retail stores with lifestyle products including jams, jellies, tablecloths and tableware. —Brendan Morrow, USA TODAY, 19 Feb. 2025

Here, that strong brew can be mixed with a variety of milks, including ube, and topped with options that range from oolong boba to lychee jelly. —Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 27 Jan. 2025

Verb

The depths are a swirl of tapioca, agar-agar and basil seeds like a hundred tiny eyes, jellied on the outside with a crunch within. —Ligaya Mishan, New York Times, 24 May 2018

From here, the longest run in the region is a leg-jellying 15 kilometer, 2,000-meter descent back down to Gaislachkogl. —CNN, 26 Oct. 2017

Adjective

So peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are a good substitute for that. —Janet W. Lee, NPR, 11 Jan. 2025

Xavier McKinney loved peanut butter and jelly sandwiches as a kid, but only under one condition. —Matt Schneidman, The Athletic, 8 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

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

Adjective

jeal(ous) + -y entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1590, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Adjective

1931, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing jelly

• box jelly
• calf's-foot jelly
• comb jelly
• jelly baby
• jelly bean
• jelly roll
• petroleum jelly
• royal jelly

Rhymes for jelly

• belly
• deli
• felly
• kellie
• melly
• nellie
• nelly
• shelly
• skelly
• smellie
• smelly
• tele

Kids Definition

jelly

1 of 2 noun

jel·​ly ˈjel-ē 

plural jellies

1

: a food with a soft elastic consistency due usually to gelatin or pectin

especially : a fruit product made by boiling sugar and the juice of fruit

2

: a substance resembling jelly

jellylike

-ē-ˌlīk 

adjective

jelly

2 of 2 verb

jellied; jellying

: jell sense 1

Medical Definition

jelly

noun

jel·​ly ˈjel-ē 

plural jellies

1

: 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

2

: 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