Words / A1

JEL-ee-bayb-ee/ˈdʒeli ˌbeɪbi/

A jelly baby is a small soft British sweet shaped like a baby, in different colours. Countable: a jelly baby, jelly babies. Jelly (the wobbly dessert, or jam in American English) is not the same picture; a marshmallow is also soft and sweet but is usually white or pink and not baby-shaped. Mix-up: jelly + baby as two words in a food list.

Meaning

A small soft sweet shaped like a baby (British).

Examples

• “He ate a green jelly baby.”
• “The red jelly baby is strawberry.”
• “Do not give a jelly baby to a very small child — it is sticky.”

Good to know

a jelly baby / jelly babies (British sweet). Contrast: jelly (dessert), marshmallow. Mix-up: jelly + baby.

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