Standard Lemma guide

jewellery

noun · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈd͡ʒuː(ə)lɹi/
  • US, also: /ˈd͡ʒʊ-/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • nonstandard: /ˈd͡ʒuː(ə)ləɹi/ this pronunciation gives rise to the Cockney rhyming slang tomfoolery
  • South-Asia: /dʒʋɛl(lə)ri/

1

noun

Meaning 1

Collectively, personal ornamentation such as rings, necklaces, brooches and bracelets, made of precious metals and sometimes set with gemstones.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

Examples

  • The jewellery was very expensive in that shop.
  • She had more jewellery ornamented about her than any three ladies needed.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: bling, bling-bling, tom, tomfoolery

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Any tools, instruments, devices, etc., placed within a drill pipe.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: informal, uncountable, usually

Qualifier: oil industry

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

The shop from which a jeweller trades or makes jewellery

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

an adornment (as a bracelet or ring or necklace) made of precious metals and set with gems (or imitation gems)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: jewelry

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: adornment

Narrower terms: bead, bijou, bling, bling bling, bracelet, bangle, clip, cufflink, earring, jewel, gem, precious stone, necklace, pin, ring, band, tie clip

History

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English juelrye, from Old French juelerye, equivalent to jewel + -ery.

Across languages

Translations

98 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: مُجَوْهَرَات (mujawharāt) — personal ornamentation
  • Armenian: ոսկեղեն (oskeġen) — personal ornamentation
  • Assamese: গহনা (gohona) — personal ornamentation
  • Azerbaijani: zinət əşyaları — personal ornamentation
  • Azerbaijani: zərgərlik məmulatları — personal ornamentation
  • Azerbaijani: cəvahirat — personal ornamentation
  • Azerbaijani: qızıl-gümüş — personal ornamentation
  • Belarusian: ювелі́рныя вы́рабы (juvjelírnyja výraby) — personal ornamentation
  • Belarusian: біжутэ́рыя (bižutéryja) — personal ornamentation
  • Belarusian: аздо́бы (azdóby) — personal ornamentation
  • Bulgarian: бижу́та (bižúta) — personal ornamentation
  • Bulgarian: бижуте́рия (bižutérija) — personal ornamentation
  • Bulgarian: на́кити (nákiti) — personal ornamentation
  • Burmese: လက်ဝတ်ရတနာ (lak-watra.ta.na) — personal ornamentation
  • Burmese: လက်ဝတ်လက်စား (lak-watlakca:) — personal ornamentation
  • Chinese Cantonese: 首飾 /首饰 (sau2 sik1) — personal ornamentation
  • Chinese Mandarin: 首飾 /首饰 (shǒushi) — personal ornamentation
  • Chinese Mandarin: 珠寶 /珠宝 (zhūbǎo) — personal ornamentation
  • Cornish: gemweyth — personal ornamentation
  • Czech: klenoty — personal ornamentation
  • Czech: šperky — personal ornamentation
  • Danish: smykker — personal ornamentation
  • Dutch: sieraad — personal ornamentation
  • Estonian: ehted — personal ornamentation
  • Finnish: korut — personal ornamentation
  • French: joaillerie — personal ornamentation
  • French: bijoux — personal ornamentation
  • Galician: xoia — personal ornamentation
  • Galician: aderezo — personal ornamentation
  • German: Schmuck — personal ornamentation
  • Greek: κοσμήματα (kosmímata) — personal ornamentation
  • Hebrew: תַּכְשִׁיט (takhshítʿ) — personal ornamentation
  • Hebrew: תַּכְשִׁיטִים (takhshitʿim) — personal ornamentation
  • Hindi: आभूषण (ābhūṣaṇ) — personal ornamentation
  • Hindi: गहना (gahnā) — personal ornamentation
  • Hungarian: ékszer — personal ornamentation
  • Italian: gioielleria — personal ornamentation
  • Italian: bigiotteria — personal ornamentation
  • Japanese: 宝飾品 (hōshokuhin) — personal ornamentation
  • Japanese: ジュエリー (juerī) — personal ornamentation
  • Kazakh: зергерлік бұйымдар (zergerlık būiymdar) — personal ornamentation
  • Korean: 보석류 (boseongnyu) — personal ornamentation
  • Korean: 주얼리 (jueolli) — personal ornamentation
  • Korean: 장신구 (jangsin'gu) — personal ornamentation
  • Central Kurdish: خشڵ (xişill) — personal ornamentation
  • Lao: ຖະຫນິມ (tha nim) — personal ornamentation
  • Latin: ōrnāmentum — personal ornamentation
  • Macedonian: накит (nakit) — personal ornamentation
  • Malayalam: ആഭരണം (ābharaṇaṁ) — personal ornamentation
  • Māori: whakapīwari — personal ornamentation
  • Māori: taonga whakarākei — personal ornamentation
  • Marathi: दागिने (dāgine) — personal ornamentation
  • Marathi: दागदागिने (dāgdāgine) — personal ornamentation
  • Marathi: जडजवाहिर (jaḍajvāhir) — personal ornamentation
  • Navajo: ílį́įgo naalyéhé — personal ornamentation
  • Pashto: ګاڼه (gānna) — personal ornamentation
  • Pashto: کالي (kāli) — personal ornamentation
  • Pashto: جواهر (jawāher) — personal ornamentation
  • Iranian Persian: جَواهِر (javâher) — personal ornamentation
  • Iranian Persian: جَواهِرات (javâherât) — personal ornamentation
  • Polish: biżuteria — personal ornamentation
  • Portuguese: joias — personal ornamentation
  • Portuguese: joalheria — personal ornamentation
  • Romanian: bijuterii — personal ornamentation
  • Russian: ювели́рные изде́лия (juvelírnyje izdélija) — personal ornamentation
  • Russian: драгоце́нности (dragocénnosti) — personal ornamentation
  • Russian: бижуте́рия (bižutɛ́rija) — personal ornamentation
  • Russian: украше́ния (ukrašénija) — personal ornamentation
  • Serbo-Croatian: на́кит — personal ornamentation
  • Serbo-Croatian: nákit — personal ornamentation
  • Slovak: klenoty — personal ornamentation
  • Slovak: šperky — personal ornamentation
  • Slovene: nakit — personal ornamentation
  • Spanish: joyería — personal ornamentation
  • Spanish: joyas — personal ornamentation
  • Spanish: alhajas — personal ornamentation
  • Spanish: alhaites (disused) — personal ornamentation
  • Spanish: joyeles — personal ornamentation
  • Swedish: smycke — personal ornamentation
  • Tagalog: alahas — personal ornamentation
  • Tajik: заргарӣ (zargari) — personal ornamentation
  • Tajik: ҷавоҳирот (javohirot) — personal ornamentation
  • Thai: อัญมณี (an-yá-má-nii) — personal ornamentation
  • Tibetan: རྒྱན་ཆ (rgyan cha) — personal ornamentation
  • Turkish: mücevherat — personal ornamentation
  • Turkish: ziynet — personal ornamentation
  • Ukrainian: прикра́си (prykrásy) — personal ornamentation
  • Ukrainian: ювелі́рні прикра́си (juvelírni prykrásy) — personal ornamentation
  • Ukrainian: ювелі́рні ви́роби (juvelírni výroby) — personal ornamentation
  • Ukrainian: біжуте́рія (bižutérija) — personal ornamentation
  • Urdu: جَواہِرات (javāhirāt) — personal ornamentation
  • Urdu: جَواہِر (javāhir) — personal ornamentation
  • Uzbek: javohirot — personal ornamentation
  • Vietnamese: đồ châu báu — personal ornamentation
  • Vietnamese: đồ nữ trang — personal ornamentation
  • Vietnamese: đồ kim hoàn — personal ornamentation
  • Welsh: gemwaith — personal ornamentation
  • Yiddish: צירונג (tsirung) — personal ornamentation
Real reading context

jewellery in complete knowledge articles