# belly

/ˈbɛɫi/ (US) · /bˈɛli/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/belly
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. stomach area

noun · CEFR A2

the stomach or the front part of the body below the chest.

For teachers: the abdomen or stomach region of a human or animal.

- The puppy rolled over to let someone scratch its belly.
- After the heavy holiday meal, he sat back in his armchair and patted his belly with a look of total satisfaction.

### 2. underside of a vehicle

noun · CEFR B2

the bottom part of a large object, like an airplane or a ship.

For teachers: the lower fuselage of an aircraft or the underside of a large vessel.

- The luggage is stored in the belly of the plane.
- The engineers inspected the belly of the aircraft for any signs of structural damage after the emergency landing on the grass strip.

### 3. to swell or bulge

verb · CEFR C1 · Literary

to swell out or fill with air, like a sail in the wind.

For teachers: to swell out or become protuberant; often used of sails or curtains filling with air.

- The sails began to belly out as the wind picked up.
- The heavy velvet curtains bellied inward as a sudden gust of cold night air forced its way through the open window.

## Examples

- He felt full after eating a big meal and rubbed his belly.
- The cat lay on its back in the sun, waiting for someone to scratch its soft white belly.
- The aircraft's landing gear failed to deploy, forcing the pilot to perform a dangerous emergency landing on the plane's belly.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.