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Synonyms

billowy

American  
[bil-oh-ee] / ˈbɪl oʊ i /

adjective

billowier, billowiest

  1. characterized by or full of billows; surging.

    a rough, billowy sea.
billowy British  
/ ˈbɪləʊɪ /

adjective

  1. full of or forming billows

    a billowy sea
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • billowiness noun

Etymology

Origin of billowy

First recorded in 1605–15; billow + -y 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

I’m lying on a heated massage bed, cocooned in a soft, weighted blanket, as Kayla Faraji caresses my cheeks with billowy, pink goose feathers.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 2, 2026

More specifically, Cloud Dancer - a white described as "lofty" and "billowy" which "serves as a symbol of calming influence in a society rediscovering the value of quiet reflection".

From BBC • Dec. 19, 2025

On a chilly morning in early December 2017, attorney Anthony Spaniola awakened at his cabin on Van Etten Lake in Oscoda, Michigan, to the sight of billowy white froth bobbing along the shore.

From Salon • Oct. 22, 2024

Models wore collarless jackets and short feminine dresses in pastel colours as well as boxy satin jackets paired with billowy shorts in Friday night's show.

From Reuters • Sep. 23, 2023

When they stepped into the kitchen, it was like walking into a billowy cloud.

From "Caterpillar Summer" by Gillian McDunn

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.