# burly

> English word · Adjective · IPA /ˈbɜːli/ · frequency rank #36,059

## Definitions
1. Large, well-built, and muscular.
2. Great, amazing, unbelievable.
3. Of large magnitude, either good or bad, and sometimes both.

## Etymology
From Middle English burly, burely, borly, burlich, borlich, borlic (“tall, stately”), of uncertain origin. Cognate with Scots burely, burly (“rough, stout, sturdy, strong”). Perhaps from Old English *būrlīċ (“noble, stately”, literally “bowerly”), equivalent to bower + -ly; or from Old English *byrlīċ (“high, raised”), from byre (“raised area, mound”), cognate with Old High German burlīh, purlīh (“lofty, elevated, high, exalted”), related to Old High German burjan (“to raise, lift, push up”), English burgeon. However, Irish burla (“bundle, pack; burly person”) points to a different origin.

## Easily confused with
- **buy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-buy)
- **busy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-busy)
- **burn** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-burn)
- **bury** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-bury)
- **Burt** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-burt)
- **burr** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-burr)
- **burp** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-burp)
- **burns** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-burns)
- **burst** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-burst)
- **burnt** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-burnt)
- **Burma** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-burma)
- **busty** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-busty)
- **bushy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-bushy)
- **busby** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-busby)
- **bursa** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-bursa)
- **burqa** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-burqa)
- **busily** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-busily)
- **Burney** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-burney)
- **Burnley** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/burly-vs-burnley)
- **bur** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bur-vs-burly)

## Common misspellings (8)
`bburly`, `bruly`, `bulry`, `burlly`, `burlyy`, `burrly`, `buryl`, `ubrly`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/burly