Etymology

jollity

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Today it means: The state of being jolly; jolliness, cheerfulness. Full definition →

Middle English jolyfte ← Old French joliveté
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The story

  1. Old French · derived fromjoliveté“gaiety, cheerfulness; amorous passion; life of pleasure”
  2. Middle English · inherited fromjolyfte
  3. English todayjollity

From Middle English jolyfte, from Old French joliveté (“gaiety, cheerfulness; amorous passion; life of pleasure”), from jolif. Equivalent to jolly + -ty.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.