What it means
Short for Wellington boot, the rubber boot you chuck on for mud, rain, fields, festivals, and any other soggy nightmare. In British chat it also shows up in give it some welly, which means stop being half-hearted and put some proper force or effort into it.
Usage examples
"Chuck your wellies on, the towpath’s pure sludge. And give it some welly up this hill, mate, the car’s dying for a gear change."
"The hill was steep so I gave it some welly on the pedals, legs burning, and just about made it to the top."
"You'll need your wellies for that campsite, it's turned into a swamp overnight."
"Oi, give it some welly when you shove the sofa, it's not gonna move if you tickle it."
"It's lashing out there, grab your wellies or your socks are finished before we hit the gate."
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Where it comes from
Welly is a British shortening of Wellington boot, the waterproof boot named after the Duke of Wellington in the 19th century. The force sense comes from the phrase give it some welly, where welly means real shove, pressure, or oomph put into whatever you're doing.
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