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burliness

 - 3 dictionary results

bur⋅ly

  [bur-lee]
–adjective, -li⋅er, -li⋅est.
1. large in bodily size; stout; sturdy.
2. bluff; brusque.
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Origin:
1250–1300; ME borli, burli, OE borlīce (adv.) excellently, equiv. to bor(a) ruler + -līce -ly

Related forms:
bur⋅li⋅ly, adverb
bur⋅li⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
1. strapping, stocky, brawny, thickset, beefy, hefty.

Antonyms:
1. puny, weak, frail.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To burliness
bur·ly   (bûr'lē)   
adj.   bur·li·er, bur·li·est
Heavy, strong, and muscular; husky. See Synonyms at muscular.

[Middle English burlich, from Old English *borlic, excellent; see bher-1 in Indo-European roots.]
bur'li·ly adv., bur'li·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

burly 
c.1300, perhaps from O.E. burlic "noble, stately," lit. "bowerly," fit to frequent a lady's apartment (see bower). Sense descended through "stout," and "sturdy" by 15c. to "heavily built." Another theory connects the original word to O.H.G. burlih "lofty, exalted," related to burjan "to raise, lift."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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