kali

K5A1L1I1
/ˈkæli//ˈkeɪli//ˈkɑːli/

noun

The prickly glasswort (Kali turgidum, syn. of Salsola kali).

Similar
arniseskrimaMahakaliKali MaaKali MaMaa KaliKalipurushKali Purush
Less commonScrabble 8

Meanings

kali1

nounkali (uncountable)
  1. uncountableThe prickly glasswort (Kali turgidum, syn. of Salsola kali).

    But the kali is principally regarded, on account of its yielding copiously, when burnt, the fixed alkaline salt called soda[…]

    1765, Temple H. Croker, Thomas Williams, Samuel Clarke, The Complete Dictionary of Arts and Sciences: Volume 2
  2. uncountableAlkali, particularly soda ash or potash.

kali2

nounkali (uncountable)
  1. uncountableTraditional Philippine stick fighting, a martial art.

    Synonyms: arnis, eskrima

kali3

nounkali (uncountable)
  1. uncountableA type of British crystalline sweet or candy, similar in appearance to sherbet but made with larger sugar crystals.

    A positive shower of sherbets. Include fountains, lemons, dibdabs, flying saucers, even jars of Kali.

    2012 June 6, Nigel Slater (@NigelSlater), Twitter
    2 more examples

    [M]any women will be glad to know exactly how to start making sweets so that they will be saleable. [...] Lozenges, comfits, kali, bonbons, etc.

    1928, Kenrayne (pseudonym), “Toffees and Twists”, in The Homestead (South Africa), page 27

    The stock is supplied by Sela Traditional Sweet Co., based in Thynne Street, West Bromwich, which has been making a vast range of boiled sweets—sarsaparilla tablets, kali, clove balls, lime juice bricks, rosy apples and the rest—since 1882.

    2005, Christopher Upton, Living Back-to-back, page 152

Kali4

proper noun
  1. HinduismA goddess in Hinduism, one of the most significant figures within that religion, who destroys evil forces and bestows liberation.

    To many Hindu Bengalis, Kālī is the most important divinity. Identified with the great Goddess, Devi Bhagavati, she subsumes all other goddesses.

    2000, Sanjukta Gupta, “27: The Worship of Kālī According to the Toḑala Tantra”, in David Gordon White, editor, Tantra in Practice, published 2001, page 463
    2 more examples

    Kālī is Śiva's "other" wife, as it were, provoking him and encouraging him in his mad, antisocial, often disruptive habits. It is never Kālī who tames Śiva but Śiva who must becalm Kālī.

    1986, David R. Kinsley, Hindu Goddesses: Visions of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Tradition, published 1988, page 122

    A popular form of Kali worshiped in Calcutta is Adya Shakti Kali, or Kali as primordial power. Adya Shakti Kali is also present in some tantras, especially the Mahanirvana Tantra. Because she devours Kala or Time, she is Kali, the original form of all things, and because she is the origin and devourer of all things, she is called Adya Kali.

    2011, June McDaniel, “2: Kali: Goddess of Life, Death, and Transcendence”, in Patricia Monaghan, editor, Goddesses in World Culture, volume 1, page 26

    Synonyms: Mahakali, Kali Maa, Kali Ma, Maa Kali

  2. A female given name from Sanskrit used especially in India.

Kali5

proper noun
  1. HinduismA male demon, lord of Kali Yuga and the nemesis of Kalki, tenth avatar of Vishnu.

    Synonyms: Kalipurush, Kali Purush, Kalpurush

Kali6

proper noun
  1. homeopathyA potassium salt.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounTraditional Philippine stick fighting, a martial art.

proper nounA goddess in Hinduism, one of the most significant figures within that religion, who destroys evil forces and bestows liberation.

Similar
MahakaliKali MaaKali MaMaa Kali

proper nounA male demon, lord of Kali Yuga and the nemesis of Kalki, tenth avatar of Vishnu.

Similar
KalipurushKali PurushKalpurush

More synonyms by meaning

nounbushy plant of Old World salt marshes and sea beaches having prickly leaves; burned to produce a crude soda ash

Similar
saltwortbarillaglasswortkelpwortSalsola kaliSalsola soda
Broader

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

kali · noun

  1. Arabicقِلْي
  2. Englishkali

From Arabic قِلْي (qily). See alkali.

Full word history & related roots →

kali · noun

Uncertain; see arnis#Name at Wikipedia for more.

Full word history & related roots →

kali · noun

Uncertain; possibly a reference to the appearance of soda ash produced by burning kali (Etymology 1).

Full word history & related roots →

Kali · proper noun

  1. Sanskritकाली
  2. EnglishKali

From Sanskrit काली (kālī) or कालिका (kālikā).

Full word history & related roots →

Kali · proper noun

  1. Sanskritकलि
  2. Sanskritकलि
  3. EnglishKali

Borrowed from Sanskrit कलि (kali).

Full word history & related roots →

Kali · proper noun

  1. GermanKalium
  2. EnglishKali

A shortening of German Kalium.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Basque Kali
  • Kaligoddess
Bengali কালী
  • কালী (kali)goddess
Bulgarian Кали
  • Калиgoddess
Chinese Mandarin 迦梨, 時母 /时母
  • 迦梨 (Jiālí)goddess
  • 時母 /时母 (Shímǔ)goddess
Czech Kálí
  • Kálígoddess
Danish Kali
  • Kaligoddess
Dutch Kálii
  • Káliigoddess
Finnish Kali
  • Kaligoddess
French Kâlî
  • Kâlîgoddess
German Kali
  • Kaligoddess
Hindi काली, कलि
  • काली (kālī)goddess
  • कलि (kali)male demon
Hungarian Káli
  • Káligoddess
Indonesian Kali
  • Kaligoddess
Irish Cailí
  • Cailígoddess
Italian Kali
  • Kaligoddess
Japanese カーリー
  • カーリー (kārī)goddess
Korean 칼리
  • 칼리 (kalli)goddess
Polish Kali
  • Kaligoddess
Portuguese Kali
  • Kaligoddess
Russian Ка́ли
  • Ка́ли (Káli)goddess
Spanish Kali
  • Kaligoddess
Swedish Kali
  • Kaligoddess
Tamil காளி
  • காளி (kāḷi)goddess
Thai กาลี
  • กาลี (kālī)goddess
Turkish Kali
  • Kaligoddess
Urdu کالی
  • کالی (kālī)goddess

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with kali

All rhymes →

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

kali. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kali

MLA

“kali.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kali. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “kali,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kali.

Source: kali on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.