1
as in stomachs
an enlarged or bulging abdomen
worked hard to get rid of his belly in time to attend his class reunion
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in abdomens
the part of the body between the chest and the pelvis
a baby with a round little belly
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in hearts
the seat of one's deepest thoughts and emotions
in my belly I knew that he wasn't telling the truth, as the details of his story just didn't add up
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
as in protrudes
to extend outward beyond a usual point
the sails slowly bellied as the wind picked up
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bellies
Deena Prichep, NPR, 11 Mar. 2026
About 13% of air cargo goes through the Middle East, either on cargo planes or in the bellies of commercial airliners.
—Shannon Pettypiece, NBC news, 4 Mar. 2026
Some stayed standing, while others got in shoulder-deep or even dropped to their bellies.
—Adam Harrington, CBS News, 1 Mar. 2026
Particularly caring mice dads will groom their pups and even insulate them with their bellies against inclement weather.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 18 Feb. 2026
Tito’s vodka over the yellow bellies.
—Andrew Callahan, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2026
More food competitions in February and March This isn’t the only competition meant to keep bars and bellies full.
—Angela George, Sioux Falls Argus Leader, 26 Jan. 2026
Giving them playtime on their bellies can help, as can burping them more frequently during feedings.
—Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 22 Jan. 2026
With almost no international flights entering or leaving Venezuela, many families had to make alternate arrangements for Christmas this year, living rooms and bellies much emptier than anticipated.
—Armando Ledezma, New Yorker, 14 Jan. 2026
Noun
The reptile handlers drape the snakes over students' shoulders or bellies, but snakes also start winding their own way around the room and climbing up people's bodies (apparently some snakes' tree-climbing instincts are applicable to scaling humans as well).
—Deena Prichep, NPR, 11 Mar. 2026
About 13% of air cargo goes through the Middle East, either on cargo planes or in the bellies of commercial airliners.
—Shannon Pettypiece, NBC news, 4 Mar. 2026
Some stayed standing, while others got in shoulder-deep or even dropped to their bellies.
—Adam Harrington, CBS News, 1 Mar. 2026
Particularly caring mice dads will groom their pups and even insulate them with their bellies against inclement weather.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 18 Feb. 2026
Tito’s vodka over the yellow bellies.
—Andrew Callahan, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2026
More food competitions in February and March This isn’t the only competition meant to keep bars and bellies full.
—Angela George, Sioux Falls Argus Leader, 26 Jan. 2026
Giving them playtime on their bellies can help, as can burping them more frequently during feedings.
—Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 22 Jan. 2026
With almost no international flights entering or leaving Venezuela, many families had to make alternate arrangements for Christmas this year, living rooms and bellies much emptier than anticipated.
—Armando Ledezma, New Yorker, 14 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bellies
Noun
-
Total gastrectomies had been performed before, in patients whose stomachs were already ridden with tumors—but never routinely in healthy people who did not have cancer and may ultimately never have cancer at all.—
Sarah Zhang,
The Atlantic,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Those with strong sea legs (and stomachs) ride on the upper tier of the ferry, while the smoother seats are indoors and toward the back of the boat.—
Kate Bradshaw,
Mercury News,
23 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Starting in 2013 more than a hundred thousand women received calls about the urgent need to have surgically implanted pelvic mesh removed from their lower abdomens.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Jan. 2026
-
The stingers they are equipped with can be up to about a quarter-inch (6 mm) in length and inject a painful venom – which is stored in large quantities in their abdomens – into their victims.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
5 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
Previously, an English bull terrier Border collie mix was melting hearts on social media.—
Jack Beresford,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Mar. 2026
-
For all the success Duke has had through the years, the Blue Devils have now had hearts broken by UConn three straight times in the Big Dance.—
Noah Trister,
Baltimore Sun,
29 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Part of it protrudes from the exterior, with natural airflow helping keep the food inside chilled.—
Adam Williams
March 29,
New Atlas,
29 Mar. 2026
-
The lone camera is a single round lens that protrudes from the upper-left corner of the rear panel.—
Eric Zeman,
PC Magazine,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
To accommodate the mass of passengers, the line snakes through baggage claim and around the terminal.—
Elizabeth Wolfe,
CNN Money,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Miraculously, the line of people that usually snakes down Melrose yearning for a slice of chef Karla Subero Pittol’s passion lime fruit icebox pie is nonexistent today.—
Julissa James,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Those include tax cuts for small businesses by allowing pass-through entities to receive tax credits for research and development that are now only available for larger corporations under state law.—
Christopher Keating,
Hartford Courant,
1 Apr. 2026
-
On the South Dakota economy and growth Hansen said South Dakota should trust entrepreneurs and avoid using taxpayer money or incentives to lure big corporations to the state.—
Joshua Haiar,
States Newsroom,
1 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Young Alfred Tennyson grew up in a similarly provincial bit of England, tucked away in his father’s vicarage on a remote part of the east coast of England in a village of fewer than a hundred souls.—
Kathryn Hughes,
The New York Review of Books,
4 Apr. 2026
-
An ancient ginkgo tree enchants longing souls across more than a century in this spellbinding cinematic triptych starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Léa Seydoux.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), a brain aneurysm is a weakened area in an artery that bulges outward and fills with blood.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bellies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bellies. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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