Belly
Belly (bel"ly) , noun
[Old English bali, bely, Anglo-Saxon belg, balg, balig, bag, bellows, belly; akin to Icelandic belgr bag, bellows, Swedish balg, Danish balg, Dutch & German balg, compare Welsh bol the paunch or belly, dim. boly, Ir. bolg. Compare Bellows, Follicle, Fool, Bilge.]
1.
That part of the human body which extends downward from the breast to the thighs, and contains the bowels, or intestines; the abdomen.
Formerly all the splanchnic or visceral cavities were called bellies; -- the lower belly being the abdomen; the middle belly, the thorax; and the upper belly, the head.
2.
The under part of the body of animals, corresponding to the human belly.
Underneath the belly of their steeds.
3.
The womb. [Obsolete]
Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee.
4.
The part of anything which resembles the human belly in protuberance or in cavity; the innermost part; as, the belly of a flask, muscle, sail, ship.
Out of the belly of hell cried I.
5.
(Architecture) The hollow part of a curved or bent timber, the convex part of which is the back.
Collocations (4)
Belly doublet , a doublet of the 16th century, hanging down so as to cover the belly. — Shakespeare
Belly fretting , the chafing of a horse's belly with a girth. — Johnson
Belly timber , food. [Ludicrous] — Prior
Belly worm , a worm that breeds or lives in the belly (stomach or intestines). — Johnson
Belly ({not transcribed}) , transitive verb
To cause to swell out; to fill. [Rare]
Your breath of full consent bellied his sails.
Belly , intransitive verb
To swell and become protuberant, like the belly; to bulge.
The bellying canvas strutted with the gale.