| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| belly |
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| SYLLABICATION: | bel·ly |
| PRONUNCIATION: |  b l  |
| NOUN: | Inflected forms: pl. bel·lies
1. See abdomen (sense 1). 2. The underside of the body of certain vertebrates, such as snakes and fish. 3. Informal a. The stomach. b. An appetite for food. 4. The womb; the uterus. 5a. A part that bulges or protrudes: the belly of a sail. b. Anatomy The bulging, central part of a muscle. 6. A deep, hollow interior: the belly of a ship. | | INTRANSITIVE & TRANSITIVE VERB: | Inflected forms: bel·lied, bel·ly·ing, bel·lies
To bulge or cause to bulge. See synonyms at bulge. | | PHRASAL VERB: | belly up To approach closely: belly up to the bar. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Middle English beli, from Old English belg, bag. See bhelgh- in Appendix I.
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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