Meanings
kali1
- 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
kali2
kali3
- 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), Twitter2 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 27The 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
- 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 4632 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 122A 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 - A female given name from Sanskrit used especially in India.
Kali5
- HinduismA male demon, lord of Kali Yuga and the nemesis of Kalki, tenth avatar of Vishnu.
Synonyms: Kalipurush, Kali Purush, Kalpurush
Kali6
- homeopathyA potassium salt.
Synonyms & antonyms
proper nounA goddess in Hinduism, one of the most significant figures within that religion, who destroys evil forces and bestows liberation.
proper nounA male demon, lord of Kali Yuga and the nemesis of Kalki, tenth avatar of Vishnu.
More synonyms by meaning
nounbushy plant of Old World salt marshes and sea beaches having prickly leaves; burned to produce a crude soda ash
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
kali · noun
- Arabicقِلْي
- Englishkali
From Arabic قِلْي (qily). See alkali.
More words from Arabic
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
- Sanskritकाली
- EnglishKali
From Sanskrit काली (kālī) or कालिका (kālikā).
More words from Sanskrit
Full word history & related roots →Kali · proper noun
- Sanskritकलि
- Sanskritकलि
- EnglishKali
Borrowed from Sanskrit कलि (kali).
More words from Sanskrit
Full word history & related roots →Kali · proper noun
- GermanKalium
- EnglishKali
A shortening of German Kalium.
More words from German
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
Anagrams
Cite this entry
kali. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kali
“kali.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kali. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “kali,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kali.
Source: kali on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.