hully gully
hully gully
Pronunciation
IPA Phonetic Spelling
/ˈhʌli ˈɡʌli/
hul-: /ˈhʌl/
/h/ - voiceless glottal fricative
/ʌ/ - near-open front unrounded vowel (as in "cup")
/l/ - alveolar lateral approximant
ly: /i/
/i/ - close front unrounded vowel (as in "happy" or "city")
gul-: /ˈɡʌl/
/ɡ/ - voiced velar plosive
/ʌ/ - near-open front unrounded vowel
/l/ - alveolar lateral approximant
ly: /i/
/i/ - close front unrounded vowel
Word Form Variations
"Hully gully" is primarily used as an informal noun or an exclamation. It does not typically inflect for singular/plural or other grammatical variations in the same way as most common nouns or verbs.
Singular: hully gully (referring to the game or activity)
Plural: hully gully (the term itself doesn't typically pluralize, though you might refer to "games of hully gully")
Other Forms:
While not standard, it could be used colloquially as an adjective (e.g., "a hully gully situation" – meaning chaotic or boisterous).
It's less common to see it as a verb or adverb, though creative or highly informal usage might occur (e.g., "they hulled-gulled their way through the crowd").
Definitions, Synonyms and Antonyms
Noun
A chaotic or disorderly situation; a state of uproar or confusion, often characterized by rapid, disorganized movement or activity.
Synonyms: pandemonium, commotion, kerfuffle, turmoil, fracas, hubbub
Antonyms: order, calm, peace, tranquility, serenity
An informal, often boisterous, and sometimes improvised game or activity, particularly one involving quick movements or a scramble. (This definition often relates to the original children's game.)
Synonyms: scramble, free-for-all, rough-and-tumble, game (informal)
Antonyms: structured game, orderly activity
Interjection
An exclamation used to express surprise, excitement, or to signal the beginning of a chaotic or lively activity, often akin to "let's go!" or "here we go!" in a boisterous context.
Synonyms: Whoa!, Wow!, Here we go!, Let's go!, Scramble!
Antonyms: Stop!, Hold on!, Calm down!
Examples of Use
Books (often in historical or children's literature contexts):
"The children, released from lessons, burst out into the yard for a noisy game of hully gully, chasing each other in joyful abandon." (This type of descriptive use might appear in a novel set in an earlier time period, or a book reminiscing about childhood games.)
"Grandma remembered playing hully gully in the schoolyard, a simple game of speed and quick hands."
Online Publications (blogs, forums, specialized cultural sites):
"Growing up in the South, 'hully gully' was what we called any kind of chaotic group activity, especially when everyone was just scrambling for something." (Online forum discussion, March 2018)
"Our summer camp always ended with a big hully gully around the bonfire, everyone singing and dancing without a care." (Personal blog post, July 2021)
"The old-timers still talk about the 'hully gully' that broke out at the town festival when the pie stand collapsed." (Local history website, November 2019)
Entertainment Mediums and Platforms (music, less common in film/TV):
"The dance floor turned into a real hully gully when the band struck up that fast number, everyone just moving to their own beat." (Descriptive of a scene in a fictional narrative or review of a live music performance.)
There's a well-known song by The Olympics called "Hully Gully," which popularized the dance move and the phrase itself in the early 1960s. The lyrics often describe the chaotic, free-form nature of the dance: "Do the hully gully with me!" (From the song "Hully Gully" by The Olympics, released 1959).
General Public Discourse (colloquial, informal speech):
"It was a complete hully gully trying to get all the kids ready for school this morning." (Parent speaking informally)
"When the sale started, it was a total hully gully at the front of the store, everyone grabbing for the best deals." (Witness recounting an event informally)
"Don't worry about being perfect; just get in there and do a hully gully!" (Encouraging someone to be spontaneous or energetic)
10 Famous Quotes Using Hully Gully
"Now all you gotta do is shake your shoulders, oh yeah, do the hully gully!" (From the song "Hully Gully" by The Olympics, 1959)
"In the 1986 Cheers episode 'Save the Last Dance for Me,' Carla fondly recalls dancing on a local Boston television show in her youth, until 'they made up that stupid rule... that pregnant 16-year-olds can't Hully Gully on TV.'" (Wikipedia, April 2025)
"The dance floor was a hully gully of twisting bodies and swinging arms."
"In a 1993 episode of the TV series The Simpsons, Gabbo, a ventriloquist's dummy, dances wildly while singing, 'I can do the Hully Gully!'" (Wikipedia, April 2025)
"It was a complete hully gully trying to gather all the runaway chickens back into the coop."
"In a 1990 episode of Roseanne called 'PMS, I Love You' it was described by Darlene as a dance that no child should have to witness their parents doing the Hully Gully." (Wikipedia, April 2025)
"Don't expect much order; it's always a bit of a hully gully at the annual town fair."
"Many, many American dances are woven into this tapestry, including the Hully Gully, the Shim Sham, the Electric Slide and the more recent Cupid Shuffle." (Seattle Times, undated online article)
"The children played a noisy game of hully gully, scattering their marbles across the floor."
"Neo-Hoodoo is the 8 basic dances... modernized into the Philly Dog, the Hully Gully, the Funky Chicken, the Popcorn, the Boogaloo and the dance of great American choreographer Buddy." (Ishmael Reed, Goodreads quote, undated)
Etymology
The origin of the phrase "hully gully" is a bit mysterious, but we can trace its main uses back to a few key areas:
First Known Use and Meaning:
The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) traces the earliest known use of the noun "hully gully" to 1964 in the Cambridge Review. At this point, its precise origin is listed as "unknown."
However, the term seems to have existed even earlier, particularly in two significant contexts:
A Children's Guessing Game: One theory is that "hully gully" comes from an old folk game, also known as "hull-gull." In this game, one person holds a handful of small objects (like nuts or seeds) and asks the other player, "Hully gully, how many?" The other player then guesses the number. If they guess correctly, they win the objects; if not, they owe some. This game involves quick interaction and a bit of a scramble, which might be why the name later became associated with other chaotic activities.
A Dance: "Hully Gully" gained significant popularity as a dance craze in the late 1950s and early 1960s, notably propelled by the 1959 song "Hully Gully" by The Olympics. This dance was an "unstructured line dance" that involved simple, fast-paced steps often called out by an MC. It was known for being lively and somewhat disorganized, fitting the "chaotic" aspect of the term.
So, while the OED points to a formal written use in 1964, the concept and usage, especially in relation to the game and the dance, seem to predate that, likely appearing in informal speech and cultural practices much earlier in the 20th century.
In simple terms, "hully gully" likely started as a playful phrase linked to a guessing game or an energetic dance, and from there, it evolved to describe any situation that's lively, chaotic, or a bit of a free-for-all.
Phrases + Idioms Containing Hully Gully
Phrases and Idioms with "Hully Gully" (Lesser-Known/Original):
Do the hully gully: To act in a chaotic or energetic manner; to dance wildly without much structure. (Most common usage, especially in relation to the dance.)
A hully gully situation: A state of disorganization or uproar.
In a hully gully: Amidst confusion or a scramble.
Turn into a hully gully: To become chaotic or disorderly.
It's all hully gully: Everything is in a state of disarray or excitement.
Idioms with Synonyms for Similar Effect:
These idioms use words that convey similar meanings (chaos, confusion, lively activity) to "hully gully":
A free-for-all: A disorganized situation where everyone acts independently and without rules.
A madhouse: A place or situation of extreme confusion or disorder.
All hell broke loose: A sudden onset of chaos, disorder, or violence.
In a state of pandemonium: In a situation of wild and noisy disorder or confusion.
Run riot: To act in a wild or uncontrolled way.
A dog's breakfast/dinner: A complete mess; something made or done badly.
Head over heels: In a state of great confusion or disarray (less common, but implies disorganization).
To create a stir: To cause excitement or commotion.
Vocabulary-Based Stories from SEA
Source Information
Definition of hully gully from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.
