small

en-adj

small (comparative smaller, superlative smallest)

smaller (comparative)
smallest (superlative)

From Middle English smal, from Old English smæl (“small, narrow, slender”), from Proto-Germanic *smalaz (“small”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)mal-, *(s)mel- (“small, mean, malicious”). Cognate with Scots smal; sma (“small”); West Frisian smel (“narrow”); Dutch smal (“narrow”); German schmal (“narrow, small”); Low German small (“narrow”); Danish, Norwegian, Swedish smal (“narrow; thin; slender”); Latin malus (“bad”); Russian ма́лый (mályj, “small”).

inh

better to light one small candle than to curse the darkness

I'll have a small coffee, thanks.

(especially clothing, food or drink) That is small (the manufactured size).


small

en-noun

small (countable and uncountable, plural smalls)

(uncountable, especially clothing, food or drink) One of several common sizes to which an item may be manufactured.

Two smalls and a large, please.

(countable, especially clothing, food or drink) An item labelled or denoted as being that size.


race

en-verb

race (third-person singular simple present races, present participle racing, simple past and past participle raced)

races (present singular third-person)
racing (participle present)
raced (participle past)
raced (past)
race (infinitive)
race (first-person present singular)
raced (first-person past singular)
race (present second-person singular)
racest (archaic present second-person singular)
raced (past second-person singular)
racedst (archaic past second-person singular)
races (present singular third-person)
raceth (archaic present singular third-person)
raced (past singular third-person)
race (plural present)
raced (past plural)
race (present subjunctive)
raced (past subjunctive)
race (imperative present)
racing (participle present)
raced (participle past)

ranch

to cut, scratch, or tear, especially deeply

rash

to hack, slash, or slice (something); to scrape or scratch (something)

(clothing, footwear) To make a cut or slash in (an item of clothing or footwear) as a decoration.


shirt

→ Fiji Hindi: sat

From Middle English sherte, shurte, schirte, from Old English sċyrte (“a short garment; skirt; kirtle”), from Proto-West Germanic *skurtijā, from Proto-Germanic *skurtijǭ (“a short garment, skirt, apron”), from *skurtaz (“short”).
Cognate with Saterland Frisian Schoarte (“apron”), Dutch schort (“apron”), German Schürze (“apron”), Danish skjorte (“shirt”), Norwegian skjorte (“shirt”), Swedish skjorta (“shirt”), Faroese skjúrta (“shirt”), Icelandic skyrta (“shirt”).
Doublet of skirt via Old Norse; further related to short.

inh

It can take a while to learn how to iron a shirt properly.

She had her shertes & gyrdyls of heere.

1509, John Fisher, A Mornynge Remembraunce […] :

Several persons in December had nothing over their shoulders but their shirts.

1705, J[oseph] Addison, Remarks on Several Parts of Italy, &c. in the Years 1701, 1702, 1703, London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:

Holt was furious referee Michael Oliver refused to then award him a penalty after Ledley King appeared to pull his shirt and his anger was compounded when Spurs immediately levelled.

2012 April 9, Mandeep Sanghera, “Tottenham 1 - 2 Norwich”, in BBC Sport:

(clothing) An article of clothing that is worn on the upper part of the body, and often has sleeves, either long or short, that cover the arms.

เสื้อเชิ้ต

sʉ̂ʉa-chə́ət


button

→ German: Button

→ Hindi: बटन (baṭan)

→ Gujarati: બટન (baṭan)

→ Korean: 버튼 (beoteun)

→ Maori: pātene

→ Marathi: बटण (baṭaṇ)

→ Urdu: بَٹَن (baṭan)

From Middle English boton, botoun, from Old French boton (Modern French bouton), from Old French bouter, boter (“to push; thrust”), ultimately from a Germanic language. Doublet of Biden and beat. More at butt.

I liked the man for his own sake, and even had he promised to turn out a celebrity it would have had no weight with me. I look upon notoriety with the same indifference as on the buttons on a man's shirt-front, or the crest on his note-paper.

1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter I, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:

April fastened the buttons of her overcoat to keep out the wind.

(clothing) A knob or disc that is passed through a loop or (buttonhole), serving as a fastener.

knoop

knob or small disc serving as a fastener


coat

en-noun

coat (countable and uncountable, plural coats)

coats (plural)
cote (alternative obsolete)

Sranan Tongo: koto

→ Swahili: koti

(South Wales) Welsh: cot

(North Wales) Welsh: côt

From Middle English cote, coate, cotte, from Old French cote, cotte (“outer garment with sleeves”), from Latin cotta (“undercoat, tunic”), from Proto-Germanic *kuttô, *kuttǭ (“cowl, woolen cloth, coat”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʷewd-, *gud- (“woolen clothes”).
Cognate with Old High German kozza, kozzo (“woolen coat”) (German Kotze (“coarse woolen blanket; woolen cape”)), Middle Low German kot (“coat”), Middle Dutch cote (“coat”), Ancient Greek βεῦδος (beûdos, “woman's attire”).

cog

It was April 22, 1831, and a young man was walking down Whitehall in the direction of Parliament Street. He wore shepherd's plaid trousers and the swallow-tail coat of the day, with a figured muslin cravat wound about his wide-spread collar.

1906, Stanley J[ohn] Weyman, chapter I, in Chippinge Borough, New York, N.Y.: McClure, Phillips & Co., →OCLC, page 01:

Mind you, clothes were clothes in those days.[…]Frills, ruffles, flounces, lace, complicated seams and gores: not only did they sweep the ground and have to be held up in one hand elegantly as you walked along, but they had little capes or coats or feather boas.

1977, Agatha Christie, chapter 4, in An Autobiography, part II, London: Collins, →ISBN:

(countable, clothing) An outer garment covering the upper torso and arms.

pallto

(portata eksterdome, vintre aŭ ĝenerale en malvarma vetero) palto


crown

→ Japanese: クラウン (kuraun)

→ Korean: 크라운 (keuraun)

→ Maori: karauna

From Middle English coroune, from Anglo-Norman corone, from Latin corōna (“crown, wreath”), from Ancient Greek κορώνη (korṓnē). Doublet of corona, korona, koruna, krona, króna, and krone. Displaced native Old English corenbēag (“crown”); and Middle English kinehelm, kynehelm, from Old English cynehelm (“crown”).
* (paper size): So called because originally watermarked with a crown.

doublet

Before so many of Europe's crowns came tumbling off the heads of their royal owners, Continental Europe could show a rich variety in the matter of royal trains.

1945 September and October, C. Hamilton Ellis, “Royal Trains—V”, in Railway Magazine, page 250:

en:royal, imperial or princely headdress

(clothing, monarchy) A royal, imperial or princely headdress; a diadem.


suit

desc

→ Kashubian: sut (Canada, United States)

→ Swahili: suti

From Middle English sute, borrowed from Anglo-Norman suite and Old French sieute, siute (modern suite), originally a participle adjective from Vulgar Latin *sequita (for secūta), from Latin sequi (“to follow”), because the component garments "follow each other", i.e. are worn together. See also the doublet suite. Cognate with Italian seguire and Spanish seguir. Related to sue and segue.

A canister of flour from the kitchen had been thrown at the looking-glass and lay like trampled snow over the remains of a decent blue suit with the lining ripped out which lay on top of the ruin of a plastic wardrobe.

1963, Margery Allingham, “Foreword”, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:

Think of banking today and the image is of grey-suited men in towering skyscrapers. Its future, however, is being shaped in converted warehouses and funky offices in San Francisco, New York and London, where bright young things in jeans and T-shirts huddle around laptops, sipping lattes or munching on free food.

2013 August 3, “Revenge of the nerds”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8847:

Nick hired a navy-blue suit for the wedding.

(clothing) A set of clothes to be worn together, now especially a man's matching jacket and trousers (also business suit or lounge suit), or a similar outfit for a woman.


tank

→ Afrikaans: tenk

→ Albanian: tank

→ Gulf Arabic: تانْكي (tānki)

→ Armenian: տանկ (tank)

→ Assamese: টেংকি (teṅki)

→ Asturian: tanque

→ Azerbaijani: tank

→ Bashkir: танк (tank)

→ Belarusian: танк (tank)

→ Bengali: ট্যাংক (ṭêṅko)

→ Burmese: တင့်ကား (tang.ka:)

→ Buryat: танк (tank)

→ Catalan: tanc

→ Chechen: танк (tank)

→ Chinese:

Mandarin: 坦克 (tǎnkè)

→ Chuvash: танк (tank)

→ Czech: tank

→ Danish: tank

→ Dutch: tank

→ Dzongkha: ཏེངཀ (tengk)

→ Eastern Mari: танк (tank)

→ Estonian: tank

→ Fiji Hindi: tanki

→ Finnish: tankki

→ French: tank

→ Galician: tanque

→ Georgian: ტანკი (ṭanḳi)

→ German: Tank

→ Greek: τανκ (tank)

→ Greenlandic: tanki

→ Hebrew: טנק (tank)

desctree

→ Hindi: टंकी (ṭaṅkī)
→ Burmese: တိုင်ကီ (tuingki)

→ Hungarian: tank

→ Indonesian: tank

→ Italian: tank, tanca

→ Japanese: タンク (tanku)

→ Kazakh: танк (tank)

→ Korean: 탱크 (taengkeu)

→ Kumyk: танк (tank)

→ Kyrgyz: танк (tank)

→ Lao: ຖັງ (thang)

→ Latvian: tanks

→ Lezgi: танк (tank)

→ Lithuanian: tankas

→ Macedonian: тенк (tenk)

→ Malay: tank

→ Maori: taika

→ Norwegian: tank, tanks

→ Ossetian: танк (tank)

→ Persian: تانک (tânk)

desc

→ Portuguese: tanque (“armored vehicle”)

→ Quechua: tanki

→ Romanian: tanc

→ Romansch: tanc

desctree

→ Russian: танк (tank), танкъ (tank) — Pre-reform orthography (1918)
→ Armenian: տանկ (tank)
→ Kazakh: танк (tank)
→ Mongolian: танк (tank)

→ Carpathian Rusyn: танк (tank)

→ Serbo-Croatian:

Cyrillic script: тенк

Latin script: tenk

→ Sidamo: tanke

→ Slovak: tank

→ Slovene: tank

→ Swahili: tangi

→ Tajik: танк (tank), тонк (tonk)

→ Tamil: தாங்கி (tāṅki)

→ Tatar: танк (tank)

→ Thai: ถัง (tǎng)

→ Tokelauan: tane

→ Turkish: tank

→ Turkmen: tank

→ Ukrainian: танк (tank)

→ Upper Sorbian: tank

→ Urdu: ٹینک (ṭaink)

→ Uyghur: تانكا (tanka)

→ Uzbek: tank

→ Vietnamese: xe tăng, tăng

→ Walloon: tank

→ Welsh: tanc

→ Yakut: тааҥка (taañka)

→ Yiddish: טאַנק (tank)

From Portuguese tanque (“tank, liquid container”), from an Indo-Aryan language such as Gujarati ટાંકી (ṭā̃kī, “cistern”) or Marathi टांकी (ṭāṅkī). Compare the Arabic verb اِسْتَنْقَعَ (istanqaʕa, “to become stagnant, to stagnate”).
In the sense of armoured vehicle, first attested in 1915, prototypes were described as tanks for carrying water to disguise their nature as well as due to physical resemblance.

der

T-BACK COTTON TANK

1990 November 18, “Earl’s Reebok Sale for the Holidays”, in Granite City Press-Record Journal, volume 6, number 46, Granite City, Ill., →OCLC, page 8A:

It pleased her more than she could say to know she walked on her own land, over dewed grass, wearing a tank and cotton pajama pants.

2008, Nora Roberts, Tribute, New York, N.Y.: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, →ISBN, page 206:

I was wearing a tank and some cotton pants.

2022, Robyn Henderson-Espinoza, Body Becoming: A Path to Our Liberation, Minneapolis, Minn.: Broadleaf Books, 1517 Media, →ISBN:

On TikTok, #wifepleaser boasts more than 11.4 million views, while #wifepleasertank has racked up 13.9 million. […] Thanks to TikTok, there has been a mass adoption of the term “wife pleaser” in an attempt to rebrand the tank.

2023 August 9, Brooke Kato, “Gen Z loves the ‘wife beater’ tee — but they’re canceling the name”, in New York Post, New York, N.Y.: News Corp, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-08-10:


XL

en-noun

XL (countable and uncountable, plural XLs)

Size – L, and because of this it’s a bit small when you’re used to wearing XLs. The sleeves are particularly lilliputian

1996 December 9, Alex Lee, “Wouldn’t be seen dead in one!”, in Playstation Pro, number 1, Macclesfield: IDG Media, Central Station, page 15:

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra large (the manufactured size or an item of that size).


XL

Natalie V. Adams
First year university
Temper: Nerdy
Hair: XL

2006, “Scott Pilgrim & the Infinite Sadness”, in Scott Pilgrim, volume 3:

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra large (of the manufactured size).


sash

(clothing) A piece of cloth designed to be worn around the waist.

(clothing) A decorative length of cloth worn over the shoulder to the opposite hip, often for ceremonial or other formal occasions.


belt

→ Afrikaans: belt

→ Assamese: বেল্ট (belto)

→ Bengali: বেল্ট (belṭo)

→ Dutch: belt

→ Hindi: बेल्ट (belṭ)

→ Irish: beilt

→ Japanese: ベルト (beruto)

→ Odia: ବେଲ୍ଟ୍ (belṭ)

→ Urdu: بیلٹ (belṭ)

→ Welsh: belt

From Middle English belt, from Old English belt (“belt, girdle”), from Proto-West Germanic *baltī̆, from Proto-Germanic *baltijaz (“girdle, belt”), from Latin balteus (“belt, sword-belt”), of Etruscan origin. Cognate with Scots belt (“belt”), Dutch belt, German Balz (“belt”), Danish bælte (“belt”), Swedish bälte (“belt, cincture, girdle, zone”) and Icelandic belti (“belt”).

cog

As part of the act, the fat clown's belt broke, causing his pants to fall down.

Master leathercrafter does handcrafted wallets, belts, purses, handbags etc., supporting self and helpers. Good enough to carve fantst art and portraits into leather.

1987 August 15, Robert Benitez, “Personal advertisement”, in Gay Community News, volume 15, number 5, page 14:

(clothing) A band worn around the waist to hold clothing to one's body (usually pants), hold weapons (such as a gun or sword), or serve as a decorative piece of clothing.


beret

berets (plural)
béret (alternative)
berret (alternative archaic)

Borrowed from French béret, from Occitan (Gascon) berret (“cap”), from Old Occitan berret, from Medieval Latin birretum, from Late Latin birrus (“large hooded cloak”), from Gaulish birrus (“short cloak”), from Proto-Celtic *birros (“short”) (compare Welsh byr, Middle Irish berr). Compare biretta.

der

(clothing) A type of round, brimless cap with a soft top and a headband to secure it to the head; usually culturally associated with France.


medium

en-noun

medium (countable and uncountable, plural mediums)

Borrowed from Latin medium, neuter of medius (“middle”), from Proto-Italic *meðjos, from Proto-Indo-European *médʰyos (“between”). Compare middle. Doublet of mid, medio, media, and meson.


medium

(especially clothing, food or drink) That is medium (the manufactured size).


dress

dress (countable and uncountable, plural dresses)

→ Japanese: ドレス (doresu)

→ Korean: 드레스 (deureseu)

→ Norwegian: dress

→ Pennsylvania German: Dress

→ Scottish Gaelic: dreasa

PIE word
 *dwís
The verb is from Middle English dressen, dresse (“to arrange, put in order”), from Anglo-Norman, Old French dresser, drecier (modern French dresser), from Late Latin *directiare (“to guide, direct”). Doublet of direct.
The noun is derived from the verb.

der

Amy and Mary looked very pretty in their dresses.

She looked cool in a grey tailored cotton dress with a terracotta scarf and shoes and her hair a black silk helmet.

1963, Margery Allingham, “Dangerous Lady”, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC, page 36:

(clothing) An item of clothing (usually worn by a woman or young girl) which both covers the upper part of the body and includes a skirt below the waist.

ahi

item of clothing which both covers the upper part of the body and includes a skirt below the waist


large

en-adj

large (comparative larger, superlative largest)

larger (comparative)
largest (superlative)

From Middle English large, from Old French large, from Latin larga, feminine of largus (“abundant, plentiful, copious, large, much”), of uncertain ultimate origin; see there for more. Mostly displaced Middle English stoor, stour (“large, great”) (from Old English stōr), and muchel (“large, great”) (from Old English myċel), which has survived under a different meaning as much .

cog

(especially clothing, food or drink) That is large (the manufactured size).


large

en-noun

large (countable and uncountable, plural larges)

(uncountable, especially clothing, food or drink) One of several common sizes to which an item may be manufactured.

One small coffee and two larges, please.

(countable, especially clothing, food or drink) An item labelled or denoted as being that size.


tee

* From Middle English [Term?], from Old English te, from Latin te (the name of the letter T).
* (computing): By analogy with a T-shaped pipe that sends fluids in two directions.

Alternative form: T

Brendan pulled a black pocket tee over his head.


hat

Sranan Tongo: ati

From Middle English hat, from Old English hætt, from Proto-Germanic *hattuz (“hat”), from Proto-Indo-European *kadʰ- (“to guard, cover, care for, protect”). Cognate with North Frisian hat (“hat”), Danish hat (“hat”), Swedish hatt (“hat”), Icelandic hattur (“hat”), Finnish hattu (“hat”), Latin cassis (“helmet”), Lithuanian kudas (“bird's crest or tuft”), Avestan 𐬑𐬀𐬊𐬛𐬀 (xaoda, “hat”), Persian خود (xud, “helmet”), Welsh cadw (“to provide for, ensure”). Compare also hood.

cog

There was a neat hat-and-umbrella stand, and the stranger's weary feet fell soft on a good, serviceable dark-red drugget, which matched in colour the flock-paper on the walls.

1913, Mrs. [Marie] Belloc Lowndes, chapter II, in The Lodger, London: Methuen, →OCLC; republished in Novels of Mystery: The Lodger; The Story of Ivy; What Really Happened, New York, N.Y.: Longmans, Green and Co., […], [1933], →OCLC, page 0091:

Denzel walks. Will Smith walks. Mark Wahlberg is wearing a hat!

2009, “Cool Guys Don’t Look at Explosions”performed by Andy Samberg, Will Ferrell, and J. J. Abrams:

(clothing) A covering for the head, often in the approximate form of a cone, dome or cylinder closed at its top end, and sometimes having a brim and other decoration.


T-shirt

T-shirts (plural)
t-shirt (alternative)
tee shirt (alternative)
tee-shirt (alternative)
teeshirt (alternative)

→ Cantonese: T恤 (ti¹ seot¹)

→ Danish: T-shirt

→ Dutch: T-shirt

→ German: T-shirt

→ Gulf Arabic: تيشيرت (tīšērt)

→ Japanese: Tシャツ (tī-shatsu)

→ Korean: 티셔츠 (tisyeocheu)

→ Mandarin: T恤 (tì xù)

→ Norwegian Bokmål: T-shirt

desc

→ Norwegian Bokmål: T-skjorte, T-trøye (calque)

→ Norwegian Nynorsk: T-skjorte (calque)

→ Swedish: T-shirt

→ Swedish: T-tröja (calque)

→ Turkish: tişört

been there, done that, bought the T-shirt

Many bands make more money from T-shirt sales than from sale of tickets.

Think of banking today and the image is of grey-suited men in towering skyscrapers. Its future, however, is being shaped in converted warehouses and funky offices in San Francisco, New York and London, where bright young things in jeans and T-shirts huddle around laptops, sipping lattes or munching on free food.

(clothing) A lightweight shirt without buttons, usually with short sleeves and no collar. Often made of cotton and frequently bears a picture or slogan.


bottom

en-noun

bottom (countable and uncountable, plural bottoms)

bottoms (plural)
botton (alternative dialectal)

→ Dutch: bottom

→ French: bottom

→ Portuguese: bottom

PIE word
 *bʰudʰmḗn
From Middle English botme, botom, from Old English botm, bodan (“bottom, foundation; ground, abyss”), from Proto-West Germanic *butm, from Proto-Germanic *butmaz, *budmaz, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰudʰmḗn (“bottom”). Cognate with Dutch bodem, German Boden, Icelandic botn, Danish bund; also Irish bonn (“sole (of foot)”), Ancient Greek πυθμήν (puthmḗn, “bottom of a cup or jar”), Sanskrit बुध्न (budhna, “bottom”), Persian بن (bon, “bottom”), Latin fundus (“bottom”) (whence fund, via French).
The sense “posterior of a person” is first attested in 1794; the verb “to reach the bottom of” is first attested in 1808. bottom dollar (“the last dollar one has”) is from 1882.

cog

Coordinate term: top

There’s a hole in her pyjama bottoms.

(clothing) A garment worn to cover the body below the torso.


sock

en-noun

sock (plural socks or (informal, nonstandard) sox)

socks (plural)
sox (informal nonstandard plural)

desctree

→ French: socquette
→ Portuguese: soquete

Japanese: ソックス (sokkusu) < socks

Swahili: soksi < socks (plural)

From Middle English socke, sokke, sok, from Old English socc (“sock, light shoe, slipper”), a West Germanic borrowing from Latin soccus (“a light shoe or slipper, buskin”), from Ancient Greek σύκχος (súkkhos, “a kind of shoe”), probably from Phrygian or from an Anatolian language. Beekes compares Avestan 𐬵𐬀𐬑𐬀 (haxa, “sole of the foot”). Cognate with Scots sok (“sock, stocking”), West Frisian sok (“sock”), Dutch sok (“sock”), German Socke (“sock”), Danish sok, sokke (“sock”), Swedish sock, socka (“sock”), Icelandic sokkur (“sock”). Doublet of zocco; also related to zoccolo, socle, and zocalo.

der

(clothing) A knitted or woven covering for the foot.


beanie

From bean (“the head”) + -ie (diminutive suffix).

suf

Enrique Iglesias is often seen wearing a beanie.

The sensation was curious. The bullet passed through her thigh, cleanly, severing the dust-bones and making the second self stumble for a moment before knitting the injury back together. It didn't hurt — she'd have needed an entire quarry's worth of sand for nociception — but she still felt the hole appear, still felt the tiny slug passing through, still felt the quivering impact and the explosive exit. She felt the next three as well, and then she was standing over a cowering woman in a black leather jacket and beanie with a look of complete and total bafflement on her face.

2023 September 22, HarryBlank, “Off Track”, in SCP Foundation, archived from the original on 2024-05-25:

(clothing) A cap that fits the head closely, usually knitted from wool.


conservative

en-adj

conservative (comparative more conservative, superlative most conservative)

more conservative (comparative)
most conservative (superlative)

Borrowed from Middle French conservatif, from Latin cōnservō (“to preserve”). Equivalent to conserve + -ative.

(clothing) Conventional, traditional, and moderate in style and appearance; not extreme, excessive, faddish, or intense.


glove

→ Maori: karapu

From Middle English glove, glofe, from Old English glōf, *glōfe, *glōfa, ("glove"; weak forms attested only in plural form glōfan (“gloves”)), from Proto-Germanic *galōfô (“glove”), from Proto-Germanic *ga- (“collective and associative prefix”) + Proto-Germanic *lōfô (“flat of the hand, palm”), from Proto-Indo-European *lāp-, *lēp-, *lep- (“flat”). Cognate with Scots gluve, gluive (“glove”), Icelandic glófi (“glove”). Related to Middle English lofe, lufe (“palm of the hand”). More at loof.

gloss

"glove"; weak forms attested only in plural form <i class="Latn mention" lang="ang">glōfan</i> (“gloves”)

der

I wore gloves to keep my hands warm.

The boxing champ laced on his gloves before the big bout.

(clothing) An item of clothing, covering all or part of the hand and fingers, but usually allowing independent movement of the fingers.


pocket

→ Japanese: ポケット

→ Welsh: poced

From Middle English pocket (“bag, sack”), from Anglo-Norman poket, Old Northern French poquet, poquete, diminutive of poque, poke (“bag, sack”) (compare modern Norman pouquette and modern French pochette from Old French pochete, from puche), from Frankish *pokō (“pouch”), from Proto-Germanic *pukkô, *pukô (“bag; pouch”), from Proto-Indo-European *bew- (“to blow, swell”). Equivalent to poke + -et. Doublet of pochette. Cognate with Middle Dutch poke, Alemannic German Pfoch (“purse, bag”), Old English pocca, pohha (“poke, pouch, pocket, bag”), Old Norse poki (“bag, pocket”). Compare the related poke (“sack or bag”). See also Modern French pochette and Latin bucca.

is that a gun in your pocket or are you just pleased to see me

“Do I fidget you ?” he asked apologetically, whilst his long bony fingers buried themselves, string, knots, and all, into the capacious pockets of his magnificent tweed ulster.

1904–1905, Baroness Orczy [i.e., Emma Orczy], chapter 1, in The Case of Miss Elliott, London: T[homas] Fisher Unwin, published 1905, →OCLC; republished as popular edition, London: Greening & Co., 1909, OCLC 11192831, quoted in The Case of Miss Elliott (ebook no. 2000141h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg of Australia, February 2020:

(clothing) A bag stitched to an item of clothing, used for carrying small items.


boxing glove

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-boxing glove.wav

(boxing, clothing) A padded mitten, designed to protect the hand while punching, and worn in boxing.


ease

From Middle English ese, eise, aise, from Anglo-Norman ese (“ease”), from Old French eise, aise (“elbow room; opportunity”), of uncertain and obscure origin. Apparently related to Provençal ais, Italian agio and asio, Sicilian aciu and Portuguese azo. Sometimes ascribed to Vulgar Latin *āsia or *āsium, possibly from Latin ānsa (“handle, haft”) or Frankish *ansiju (“handle, loophole, eyelet; cup-handle; arms akimbo, elbow room”), but more often derived from Vulgar Latin *adjace(m), from Latin adjacēns (“adjacent, neighbouring”), present participle of adjaceō (“lie next to, border on”), though the forms and senses are difficult to trace clearly.
Alternatively, possibly from a non-Latin source such as Germanic or Celtic on the basis of the conflicting forms which appear in various Romance languages. Compare Old English īeþe (“easy”), Gothic 𐌰𐌶𐌴𐍄𐌹 (azēti, “ease; pleasure”), *𐌰𐌶𐌴𐍄𐍃 (*azēts, “easy”), Breton eaz, ez (“easy”), Irish adhais (“easy; leisure”). See also eath.
The verb is from Middle English esen, ultimately of the same origin.

Add some ease to the waist measurement.

Relief, an end to discomfort, particularly:

(clothing) Additional space provided to allow greater movement.


parka

parkas (plural)
parkee (alternative)
parki (alternative)

→ Afrikaans: parka

→ Chinese: 派克 (pàikè)

→ Dutch: parka

→ Finnish: parka

→ French: parka

→ German: Parka

→ Italian: parka

→ Japanese: パーカ (pāka)

→ Korean: 파카 (paka)

→ Polish: parka

→ Spanish: parka

→ Swedish: parkas

→ Turkish: parka

1780, ultimately from Tundra Nenets парка (parka), via Aleut parka and Russian па́рка (párka). Perhaps from Proto-Uralic; see dialectal Finnish parka (“rag, swaddling clothes”), which may be a cognate from Proto-Uralic, or an early borrowing from another Uralic language.

cog

Basir tended to wear a beige suede parka over his shalwar kameez.

2002 January 3, James Meek, London Review of Books:

(clothing) A long jacket with a hood which protects the wearer against rain and wind.


helmet

→ Korean: 헬멧 (helmet)

→ Palauan: hermet

→ Punjabi:

Gurmukhi script: ਹੈਲਮਟ (hailmaṭ)

Shahmukhi script: ہیلمٹ (hailmaṭ)

→ Swahili: helmeti

→ Welsh: helmed

From Middle English helmet, helmett, a borrowing from Old French helmet, heaumet, a diminutive of helme (Modern French heaume), equivalent to helm + -et. The Old French is itself of Germanic origin (whence Old English helm). Used in English since the 15th century, it has largely displaced helm as the general word.

Now that she had rested and had fed from the luncheon tray Mrs. Broome had just removed, she had reverted to her normal gaiety. She looked cool in a grey tailored cotton dress with a terracotta scarf and shoes and her hair a black silk helmet.

1963, Margery Allingham, chapter II, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:

Most speedboarders wear helmets, knee and elbow pads, and occasionally all-in-one aerodynamic suits, to protect themselves.

2009 February 25, Noam Friedlander, “Dangerous sport of speedboarding banned from Malibu streets”, in The Daily Telegraph:

(clothing) A hard, protective head covering, typically part of armour.

(heraldry) Such a helm when placed above a shield on a coat of arms.


doff

en-verb

doff (third-person singular simple present doffs, present participle doffing, simple past and past participle doffed)

doffs (present singular third-person)
doffing (participle present)
doffed (participle past)
doffed (past)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-doff.wav

From Middle English doffen (“take off”), contraction of Old English dōn of. Equivalent to a blend of do + off. Compare don, dup, dout, gauf.

And made us doff our easy robes of peace.

c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i]:

[A]t night, or in the rain, / He dons a surcoat which he doffs at morn: […]

1867, Ralph Waldo Emerson, “The Adirondacs. A Journal. Dedicated to My Fellow-travellers in August, 1858.”, in May-Day and Other Pieces, Boston, Mass.: Ticknor and Fields, →OCLC, page 47:

She had doffed the shirt and Bermuda-shorts which she had been wearing and was now dressed for her journey home.

1960, P[elham] G[renville] Wodehouse, chapter VII, in Jeeves in the Offing, London: Herbert Jenkins, →OCLC:

(clothing) To remove or take off (something such as clothing).

свалям

to remove or take off (something such as clothing)


pug

Origin unknown, possibly related to West Flemish pugge (“(adjective) small; (noun) short person; pet name derived from the first name Pugge”); though it is uncertain whether sense 1 (“senses relating to someone or something small”) and sense 2 (“senses relating to people”) are derived from the same source.
Sense 1.8 (“small demon”) was probably influenced by, though not a variant of, puck.

pentu

any of various animals, such as a ferret, hare, squirrel, or young salmon

Senses relating to someone or something small.

(clothing, historical) In full pug hood: a hood, sometimes with a short cloak attached, worn by women around the middle of the 18th century.


yoke

From Middle English yok, yoke, ȝok from Old English ġeoc (“yoke”), from Proto-Germanic *juką (“yoke”), from Proto-Indo-European *yugóm (“yoke”), from *yewg- (“to join; to tie together, yoke”). Doublet of yuga, jugum, yoga and possibly yogh.
Senses 3.1 (“area of arable land”) and 3.2 (“amount of work done with draught animals”) probably referred to the area of land that could generally be ploughed by yoked draught animals within a given time.

poikkipuu

linking or supporting object that resembles a yoke

駕駛桿 /驾驶杆

device with crosspieces used to control an aircraft

iugum

unit of land area notionally equivalent to the area a team of yoked draft animals can work in a day

The country children thereabouts wore their dresses to their shoe-tops, but this city child was dressed in what was then called the "Kate Greenaway" manner, and her red cashmere frock, gathered full from the yoke, came almost to the floor.

1913 June, Willa Sibert Cather, chapter I, in O Pioneers!, Boston, Mass.; New York, N.Y.: Houghton Mifflin Company […], →OCLC, part I (The Wild Land), pages 11–12:

The dresses her mother made looked ugly, even obscene, for her breasts were well grown, and the yokes emphasized them, showing flattened bulges under the tight band of material; and the straight falling line of the skit was spoiled by her full hips.

1952, Doris Lessing, chapter 1, in Martha Quest, London: HarperCollinsPublishers, published 1993, →ISBN, part 1, page 28:

Senses relating to a frame around the neck.

Any of various linking or supporting objects that resembles a yoke (sense 1.1); a crosspiece, a curved bar, etc.

(clothing) The part of an item of clothing which fits around the shoulders or the hips from which the rest of the garment hangs, and which is often distinguished by having a double thickness of material, or decorative flourishes.


peak

→ German: Peak

→ Russian: пик (pik) (in час пик (čas pik))

From earlier peake, peek, peke, from Middle English pek (in place names), itself an alteration of pike, pyke, pyk (“a sharp point, pike”), from Old English pīc, piic (“a pike, needle, pin, peak, pinnacle”), from Proto-West Germanic *pīk, from Proto-Germanic *pīkaz (“peak”).
Cognate with Dutch piek (“pike, point, summit, peak”), Danish pik (“pike, peak”), Swedish pik (“pike, lance, point, peak”), Norwegian pik (“peak, summit”). More at pike.

(clothing, UK) visor (horizontal part of a cap sticking out in front and shading the wearer's eyes)


formal

en-noun

formal (countable and uncountable, plural formals)

From Middle English formel, borrowed from Old French formel, from Latin fōrmālis, from fōrma (“form”); equivalent to form + -al.

Well, I open up the door / And much to my surprise / The girls were wearin' formals / And the boys were wearin' ties

1965, Shadow Morton, “Sophisticated Boom Boom”, performed by The Shangri-Las:


jeans

Originally a shortened form of jean fustian (from Middle English Gene (“Genoa; Genovese”) (from Latin Genua) + fustian (“strong cotton fabric”). The -s was added to jean under influence from the cognate Old French Jannes (modern French Gênes).

Traditionally most jeans are dyed dark blue.

As a general thing, they were dressed in homespun “jeans,” blue or yellow—there were no other varieties of it; all wore one suspender and sometimes two—yarn ones knitted at home,—some wore vests, but few wore coats.

1873, Mark Twain [pseudonym; Samuel Langhorne Clemens], Charles Dudley Warner, The Gilded Age: A Tale of To-day, Hartford, Conn.: American Publishing Company, published 1874, →OCLC, page 19:

Think of banking today and the image is of grey-suited men in towering skyscrapers. Its future, however, is being shaped in converted warehouses and funky offices in San Francisco, New York and London, where bright young things in jeans and T-shirts huddle around laptops, sipping lattes or munching on free food.

2013 August 3, “Revenge of the nerds”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8847:

(clothing) A pair of trousers made from denim cotton.


attire

attire (countable and uncountable, plural attires)

The verb is from Middle English atyren, atiren, from Old French atirier (“to equip”), from a- + tire (“rank”), akin to German Zier (“ornament”) and Old Norse tírr (“glory, renown”).
The noun is from Middle English atir, from the verb.

He was wearing his formal attire.

(clothing) One's dress; what one wears; one's clothes.


bomber

A few years ago, the leather bomber was a gold mine for retailers and a gravy train for vendors. Consumers were crazy for them.

1991 March 18, Jeff Black, “The Bomber Jacket Is Taking Lots of Flak”, in DNR, volume 21, number 53, →ISSN, page 13:

First singer and guitarist Marcus Mumford, wearing a black suit, then bassist Ted Dwane, in leather bomber and T-shirt.[…]

2012 November 15, Tom Lamont, “How Mumford & Sons became the biggest band in the world”, in The Guardian:


French cut

(clothing) Designed to reveal the thigh, usually of women's underpants.


DJ

(clothing) Abbreviation of dinner jacket.


petite

en-adj

petite (comparative more petite, superlative most petite)

more petite (comparative)
most petite (superlative)

Borrowed from French petite f, feminine of petit m (“small, little”).

(clothing) Of small size; intended for small-framed adult women.


turban

turbans (plural)
turbant (alternative)
tulipant (alternative)

From Middle French turbant, from Italian turbante, from Ottoman Turkish دلبند (tülbent), from Classical Persian دلبند (dulband), also the root of tulip.

turban-top (Helvella spp., Gyromitra esculenta

Me thinks I ſee the Turke nodding vvith his Turban, and telling me that I ſhould thanke Heaven for that diſtance vvhich is betvvixt us, els he vvould ſvvallovv me all up at one morſell; […]

1644, James Howell, England’s Teares, for the Present Wars, […], London: […] Richard Heron, →OCLC, page 4:

From India and the golden Cherſoneſs, / And utmoſt Indian Iſle Taprobane, / Dusk faces vvith vvhite ſilken Turbants vvreath'd: […]

1671, John Milton, “The Fourth Book”, in Paradise Regain’d. A Poem. In IV Books. To which is Added, Samson Agonistes, London: […] J[ohn] M[acock] for John Starkey […], →OCLC, page 82, lines 74–76:

The case was that of a murder. It had an element of mystery about it, however, which was puzzling the authorities. A turban and loincloth soaked in blood had been found; also a staff.

1927, F. E. Penny, chapter 4, in Pulling the Strings:

(clothing) A man's headdress made by winding a length of cloth round the head.


L

en-noun

L (countable and uncountable, plural Ls)

(usually clothing) Initialism of large (the manufactured size or an item of that size).


L

(usually clothing) Initialism of large (of the manufactured size).


M

M (countable and uncountable, plural Ms)

(usually clothing) Initialism of medium (the manufactured size or an item of that size).


M

(usually clothing) Initialism of medium (of the manufactured size).


S

S (countable and uncountable, plural Ss)

Abbreviation.
S
# (Stenoscript) the sound sequence /st/ in a word, e.g. it's the transcription of the suffix -ist.
# (Stenoscript) the prefix sub-
#: [some manuals advise lower-case s for the prefix sub-]
# (Stenoscript) Abbreviation of south.
# (education) Initialism of satisfactory.

(usually clothing) Initialism of small (the manufactured size or an item of that size).


S

(usually clothing) Initialism of small (of the manufactured size).


ulster

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-ulster.wav

Named after the Ulster Overcoat Company of Belfast, Northern Ireland (Ulster), the original maker of this type of coat.

“That's queer,” said the Tertium Quid. “Where's my ulster?” “What's queer?” said the Man's Wife. “I have got a chill down my back — just as if a goose had walked over my grave.”

1889, Rudyard Kipling, “At the Pit's Mouth”, in Under the Deodars, Boston: The Greenock Press, published 1899, page 53:

I hardened my heart and took the smoke-rocket from under my ulster.

1891, Arthur Conan Doyle, A Scandal in Bohemia, Norton, published 2005, page 32:

“Do I fidget you ?” he asked apologetically, whilst his long bony fingers buried themselves, string, knots, and all, into the capacious pockets of his magnificent tweed ulster.

1904–1905, Baroness Orczy [i.e., Emma Orczy], chapter 1, in The Case of Miss Elliott, London: T[homas] Fisher Unwin, published 1905, →OCLC; republished as popular edition, London: Greening & Co., 1909, OCLC 11192831, quoted in The Case of Miss Elliott (ebook no. 2000141h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg of Australia, February 2020:

Off slipped a sodden ulster. He hung it up angrily upon a peg …

1907, E.M. Forster, The Longest Journey, Part I, X [Uniform ed., p. 102]

(clothing, men's attire) A long, loose overcoat made of wool or other rough material, often called a greatcoat, which sometimes features an attached shoulder cape covering the back and sleeves, and which can sometimes be buttoned in front.


ADL

(clothing) Initialism of acquisition and distribution layer, the stay-dry layer of a diaper or menstrual pad that wicks liquid, particularly urine or menses, from the topsheet to the innermost absorbent core.


knit cap

(clothing) A soft, head-hugging cap usually without a specified front or back, barring those with designs or logos


smart casual

(clothing) A style that is informal yet smart enough for a particular situation.


smart casual

(clothing, of a style of dress) Designating such a style.


tracksuit

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-tracksuit.wav

With such focus from within the footballing community this week on Remembrance Sunday, there was something appropriate about Colchester being the venue for last night’s game. Troops from the garrison town formed a guard of honour for both sets of players, who emerged for the national anthem with poppies proudly stitched into their tracksuit jackets.

2011 November 10, Jeremy Wilson, “England Under 21 5 Iceland Under 21 0: match report”, in Telegraph:

(clothing) A garment, usually consisting of a top and trousers (commonly known as tracksuit bottoms) worn as an outer layer by participants in sporting events such as athletics. The tracksuit is usually designed to be easily removed or replaced, before or after competing. Tracksuits have also been adopted in some cultures as leisurewear.


kippah

kippah (plural kippahs or kippot or kippoth)

kippahs (plural)
kippot (plural)
kippoth (plural)
kippa (alternative)
kipah (alternative)
kipa (alternative)
kippoh (alternative)

keeper (non-rhotic, /ˈkiːpə/ pronunciation)

kipper (non-rhotic, /ˈkɪpə/ pronunciation)

In response, Germany’s most popular daily newspaper asked readers to wear the cut-out kippah as a mark of solidarity with the Jewish community, and even posted a video on its website showing how to make it.

2019 May 27, Jack Guy, “German newspaper prints cut-out kippah, urging readers to wear it in solidarity with Jews”, in CNN:

Some Jewish Americans told CNN they are now hiding their kippahs, refusing to wear their Star of David necklaces and changing long-held traditions for religious holidays.

2023 November 21, Nicquel Terry Ellis, “The Israel-Hamas war is driving a surge in US hate crimes. These Jewish Americans say it’s changing the way they live”, in CNN:

(Judaism, clothing) The cloth skullcap or yarmulke traditionally worn by male Jews.


lavaliere

lavalieres (plural)
lavalier (alternative)
lavalliere (alternative)
lavallière (alternative)

/ˌlæv.əˈlɪɹ/


yem

Borrowed from Vietnamese yếm, from Proto-Vietic *ʔiɛmʔ (“breastplate”), from Old Chinese 裺 (/*qromʔ/, /*qoms/, “bib worn by infants”).

der

(underbodice):

(outer garment):

(clothing) A Vietnamese bodice with a halterneck and a V-shaped bottom worn by women on the torso, originally as an underbodice and now also as an outer garment.

肚兜

Vietnamese bodice with a halterneck and V-shaped bottom


stovepipe

stovepipes (plural)
stove-pipe (alternative)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-stovepipe.wav

From stove + pipe. The firearms sense is due to the trapped cartridge case resembling a stovepipe of the stove sense.

I'm sure the Brunel-designed stone-built structure would have had a hatstand for his trademark stovepipe. I can picture him rocking up there of a morning and lobbing it nonchalantly onto the hatstand.

2021 December 29, Stephen Roberts, “Stories and facts behind railway plaques: Chippenham (1841)”, in RAIL, number 947, page 57:


baseball cap

There are fewer more distressing sights than that
Of an Englishman in a baseball cap

2002, The Libertines, “Time for Heroes”, in Up the Bracket:

(clothing) A cap with a rounded crown and a curved, stiffened bill at the front.


gimped

en-adj

gimped (comparative more gimped, superlative most gimped)

more gimped (comparative)
most gimped (superlative)

(of fabric, curtains, clothing, or similar) Adorned with gimp (decorative trim); edged or embroidered.

curtains; or similar; curtains; or similar


boater

From Middle English botere; equivalent to boat + -er. The use of the term for a straw hat stems from the fact that straw hats were the preferred head covering during sunny boat trips on canals and rivers.

Technically, Melania Trump was in attendance, but she chose to make herself almost invisible. Her dark boater hat was worn so low that it threw her entire face into shadow, and made eye contact with cameras or guests impossible.

2025 January 20, Jess Cartner-Morley, “Brimful of menace? Melania strikes sombre note at Trump inauguration”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

(clothing) A straw hat, very stiff, with a flat brim and crown.


nightcap

nightcaps (plural)
night cap (alternative)
night-cap (alternative)

Winston wore a nightcap to stave off the cold.

(clothing) A warm cloth cap worn while sleeping, often with pajamas, being common attire in northern Europe before effective home heating became widespread.


XXL

en-noun

XXL (countable and uncountable, plural XXLs)

extra extra large
extra extra large#English

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra extra large (the manufactured size or an item of that size).


XXL

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra extra large (of the manufactured size).


XS

XS (countable and uncountable, plural XSs)

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra small (the manufactured size or an item of that size).


XS

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra small (of the manufactured size).


XXS

XXS (countable and uncountable, plural XXSs)

extra extra small
extra extra small#English

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra extra small (the manufactured size or an item of that size).


XXS

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra extra small (of the manufactured size).


belt loop

belt loops (plural)
beltloop (alternative)

(clothing, sewing) One of the loops of fabric ringing the waist of a pair of pants, used to hold the belt in place.

(clothing, sewing) The D-shaped frame of a belt buckle.


round robin

round robins (plural)
round-robin (alternative)

/ˌɹaʊnd ˈɹɒbɪn/

From round (adjective) + robin. Sense 1 (“senses relating to something with a round shape, or which goes around”) is connected with the word round, while sense 2 (“senses relating to people, animals, or plants”) is connected with some English regional senses of the word robin where it is used in the names of various fish and plants which are not related to the red-breasted bird. However, apart from the alliteration, it is not clear why the two words came to be linked together in compounds. It is possible that the term was first used to refer to sense 1.13.1 (“consecrated host”) which appears to be the earliest attested sense, and then extended to other senses either having the sense of round or robin.
Alternatively, it has been suggested that the term is a corruption of French ruban rond (literally “round ribbon”), referring to the practice in 17th-century France of signing on ribbons which were then attached to petitions of grievances in a circular manner: see sense 1.1. However, this etymology does not explain the senses of the term unrelated to a signed document.

der

In the dayes of King Arthur of Bradley, and his four hundred forty ſixe Elders of the Round Table, the firſt men that ever vvore Round-Robins, there lived a Paſtor vvhoſe Fame (you all have had a ſpice of) called Cornelius, […] it vvas his Fate by the heat of overmuch Devotion, to conclude his dayes, and preach his ovvn Funerall Sermon.

[1642] July 8 (Gregorian calendar), T. J. [i.e., Jeremy Taylor], An Apology for Private Preaching. […], [London]: […] R. Wood, T. Wilson, and E. Christopher, →OCLC, signature [A3], recto:

(also attributive) Senses relating to something with a round shape, or which goes around.

(clothing) A small ruff worn around the neck.


ao dai

While the ao dai first took off in Tonkin, southern women in Saigon were the ones to make it famous and those Vietnamese who were overseas after 1975 ensured that it remained a symbol of national elegance until it made a comeback in post-communist Vietnam.

2016, Christopher Goscha, The Penguin History of Modern Vietnam, Penguin, published 2017, page 382:

(clothing) A two panelled dress, worn by Vietnamese women as a national costume.


NWT

N.W.T. (alternative)
N. W. T. (alternative)


princess cut

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-princess cut.wav

(clothing) A garment style in which vertical panels of material are shaped to follow the outline of the figure.


bulletproof vest

en-noun

bulletproof vest (plural bulletproof vests)

(clothing) A garment worn over the torso that protects against projectiles.


carmagnole

/ˌkɑːmənˈjəʊl/

18th-century, borrowed from French carmagnole, named after Carmagnole, the French name of the northwestern Italian town of Carmagnola.

(clothing, historical) A short jacket, fashionable during the French Revolution, with short skirts, a broad collar and lapels, and several rows of buttons.


boot cut

boot-cut (alternative)
bootcut (alternative)

(clothing) Of pants (trousers), cut as if to allow the legs of the pants to fit over boots.


longline

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-longline.wav

Strapless longline bra, with wired underbust and flexible boning, smooths womanly curves.

In the dressing room, the smiling attendant helped her into the longline corset with its built-in bra.

2007, Solange Ayre, One Thousand Brides, page 5:

(clothing) longer than usual; especially reaching to the hips


overtop

/ˌəʊvə(ɹ)ˈtɒp/

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-overtop.wav

Featured is the big plaid, streaked with white in a softly gathered skirt & an overtop of velveteen with a dacron polytester^([sic]) oliver bow blouse in white.

1964 August 27, The Upland News, seventieth year, number 24, Upland, Calif., page 3:

A very obvious point, but one easily overlooked, is that children from 0–5 grow all the time, so a garment often only fits perfectly for a short time. So if, for instance, a long sleeved dress worn during the summer is visualized as being worn under an overtop in winter, you will have to allow for 6 months’ growth.

1969, Gillian Lockwood, Making Clothes for Young Children, London: Studio Vista; New York, N.Y.: Watson-Guptill Publications, →ISBN, pages 6–7:

Brown soft kid belt (dressier day): for trousers (especially when you belt an overtop), skirts, dresses.

1981, Frances Patiky Stein, Hot Tips: 1,000 Fashion & Beauty Tricks, New York, N.Y.: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, →ISBN, page 131:

And I bought that top in every colour they had, and if they’d had more I would have bought them too. I have, literally, lived in them all this summer and know that I will all next summer too. I may even wear the darker coloured ones in the winter with a turtle-neck sweater underneath. Janis and Ozzie are wearing them on p. 150. As you can see, you can either wear this as a dress or as an overtop.

1985, Nancy Roberts, Breaking All the Rules, Harmondsworth: Viking, →ISBN, page 154:

The use of the second contrast yarn (which is thick and braid like) gives the appearance of a ribbon threaded through. Not only is this a satisfying pattern to work but the sweater can be worn for day or evening; with skirt or trousers: as a sweater or an overtop—a sufficiently versatile garment for anyone.

1987, Pauline Turner, The WI Creative Guide to Crochet, London: Unwin Hyman, →ISBN, page 56:

Skirts can also be fitted with a hip yoke to replace darts or gores. This is effective styling for a skirt worn with an overtop.

1989, Sharon Lee Tate, Inside Fashion Design, 3rd edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Row, →ISBN, page 371:

(clothing) A garment designed to be worn over the top portion of other clothes, such as an overshirt, vest, or overtunic.


shmatte

shmattes (plural)
schmatte (alternative)
schmata (alternative)
schmatta (alternative)
schmate (alternative)
schmutter (alternative)
shmatta (alternative)

Borrowed from Yiddish שמאַטע (shmate); originally from Polish szmata.

She skipped onto a minimally decorated stage in a pale salmon pink schmate covered in bows, loose-fitting and obviously filled with surprises.

1983 April 9, Walta Borawski, “Midler in Boston”, in Gay Community News, page 12:

I said, Why am I in the shmatte business? Mr. Kimmel said of his beginners luck.

2007 December 12, David M. Halbfinger, “A Film Producer Guided More by His Heart Than by His Calculator”, in New York Times:

In addition to having the barely perceptible but definitely present scummy vibe of an early 20th-century schmatte business, it was like the ultimate perversion of the male literary impulse.

2020, Emily Segal, Mercury Retrograde, New York: Deluge Books, →ISBN:

(fashion industry, clothing retail, slang) Any item of clothing.


ballgown

ballgowns (plural)
ball gown (alternative)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-ballgown.wav

(clothing) A formal gown to be worn by women to balls and similar social events.


bounceless

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-bounceless.wav

a bounceless sports bra

(chiefly clothing) Designed to reduce bouncing.


pocket square

(clothing, fashion) A handkerchief worn in a breast pocket as an accessory to a suit.


business casual

(clothing) Any standard of dress used in many business environments that is casual overall; it thus excludes most formal clothes (such as a business suit and tie) but also excludes certain overly casual clothes (such as short shorts).


business casual

en-adj

business casual (comparative more business casual, superlative most business casual)

more business casual (comparative)
most business casual (superlative)
business-casual (alternative)

(clothing) Designating such a style of dress.


underbust

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-underbust.wav


underbust

You can measure your underbust and overbust to get an idea of bra size, but it's still just a guideline.

2015 April 14, Alison Freer, How to Get Dressed: A Costume Designer's Secrets for Making Your Clothes Look, Fit, and Feel Amazing, Ten Speed Press, →ISBN:

(clothing) The circumference of a woman's chest, measured under the breasts.


overbust

An overbust corset encloses the torso, extending from just under the arms to the hips.


overbust

(clothing) The circumference of a woman's chest, measured over the breasts.


ankle boot

(clothing) A boot that rises up to the ankle.


HSP

en-noun

HSP (countable and uncountable, plural HSPs)

(clothing) Initialism of highest shoulder point.


shoulder-length

With her shoulder-length platinum blonde hair, she was easy to spot from afar.

(of hair, clothing, jewellery, or similar) Reaching the shoulders.


suit of dittoes

suit of dittoes (plural suits of dittoes)

(archaic, clothing) A suit consisting of matching trousers, coat, and waistcoat.


skinny jeans

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-skinny jeans.wav

She ordered a pair of plus-size skinny jeans online.

Got your tongue pierced anyway / You in your high-tops any day / You in your skinny jeans anyway

(clothing) A style of form-fitting jeans with very narrow, straight legs, which often taper inward at the ankles.


keikogi

(clothing, martial arts) A set of uniform worn while training in some Japanese martial arts


temple garment

(religion, clothing) A form of underwear worn by Latter-day Saints after taking part in the endowment ceremony; they are a symbolic reminder of the covenants made in temple ceremonies.


cinchable

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-cinchable.wav

I made him try on a white military-style jacket with breast pockets and a cinchable waist ($228).

2009 May 28, Mike Albo, “Spend Some Time, if Nothing Else”, in New York Times:

(clothing) Capable of being cinched, or tightened.


locker loop

(clothing) A small band on the back of a shirt, by which it can be hung up.


swimcap

(clothing) A waterproof cap worn on the head while swimming.


wetlook

wet-look (alternative)
wet look (alternative)

wetlook satin; wetlook jeans; a wetlook jacket

(chiefly attributive, of fabrics, clothing) A glossy or shiny finish, giving an appearance of being wet.


grape smugglers

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-grape smugglers.wav

Humorously suggesting that the bulges are the result of grapes hidden inside the clothing.

(clothing, slang, humorous) Tight or skimpy swimwear worn by men revealing details of the genitalia.


XXXL

XXXL (countable and uncountable, plural XXXLs)

extra extra extra large
extra extra extra large#English

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra extra extra large (the manufactured size or an item of that size).


XXXL

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra extra extra large (of the manufactured size).


extra large

(especially clothing) That is extra large (the manufactured size).


feetsy

feetsy pajamas

(clothing) Having a section that covers the feet.


hug-me-tight

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-hug-me-tight.wav

(clothing) A woman's short sleeveless close-fitting jacket, usually knitted or crocheted.


open-neck

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-open-neck.wav

an open-neck shirt


compression sock

compression sock (plural compression socks)

(clothing) An elasticated sock worn to help prevent the occurrence of venous disorders such as edema, phlebitis, and thrombosis.


tight-assed

en-adj

tight-assed (comparative more tight-assed, superlative most tight-assed)

more tight-assed (comparative)
most tight-assed (superlative)
tight-arsed (alternative UK)

1967, Wright Morris, In Orbit, Chapter 6, in Two for the Road, Santa Rosa: Black Sparrow Press, 1994, p. 264,
There is no room in his tight-assed pants for his dangling hands.

[…] the women wore hot pants and halter tops and tight-assed skirts.

1994, George Pelecanos, chapter 7, in Shoedog,, New York: St. Martin’s Press, page 56:

The waiters were all beautiful Portuguese Nancy boys dressed in tight French sailor suits—striped shirts, tight-assed bell bottoms, a blue cap with a red pompadour—and reeking of delectably cheap perfume.

2012, Robert Littell, chapter 8, in Young Philby,, New York: Thomas Dunne Books, page 164:

(informal, of an article of, clothing) Fitting tightly in the area covering the buttocks.


tea-length

(clothing, of a dress) Having a hemline that is below the knees and above the ankle.


XXXS

extra extra extra small
extra extra extra small#English

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra extra extra small (the manufactured size or an item of that size).


XXXS

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra extra extra small (of the manufactured size).


XXXXL

extra extra extra extra large
extra extra extra extra large#English

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra extra extra extra large (the manufactured size or an item of that size).


XXXXL

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra extra extra extra large (of the manufactured size).


extra small

(especially clothing) That is extra small (the manufactured size).


extra extra small

(especially clothing) That is extra extra small (the manufactured size).


extra extra extra small

extra extra extra small (not comparable)

(especially clothing) That is extra extra extra small (the manufactured size).


extra extra large

(especially clothing) That is extra extra large (the manufactured size).


extra extra extra large

extra extra extra large (not comparable)

(especially clothing) That is extra extra extra large (the manufactured size).


Prussian collar

en-noun

Prussian collar (plural Prussian collars)


mi-parti

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-mi-parti.wav

Learned borrowing from French mi-parti (literally “divided down the middle”), from Middle French mi-parti, from Old French miparti, past participle of mipartir (“to split in half”), from mi (“middle”) + partir (“to split”); compare medial and party (“divided”). Though the term is mentioned beginning in the 17th century, actual use is apparently only recorded from the 19th century onwards.

lbor

They are all parted per pale, or (to vſe Scohier's word, mi-partie, that is, parted longwiſe in the midſt, or perpendicularly parted, but yet ſeuerally affected in the partings […]

[1610, Edmund Bolton, Edm: Bolton his Elements of Armories, London: George Eld, page 95:

The extreme uncertainty of engraving the horizontal line of division in shields makes it quite reasonable to suppose the division which we see in Panwitz to have been made to look mi-parti in error.

1871 April 15, D. P., “New German flag”, in Notes and Queries, volume 7, number 172, Oxford: Oxford University Press, →DOI, page 323:

Almost all the indoor servants were given three ells of coloured shortcloth, together with three ells of striped cloth for their suits, which must have been, therefore, mi-parti.

1980, Stella Mary Newton, “VIII: Livery and the Dress of the Poor”, in Fashion in the Age of the Black Prince: A Study of the Years 1340-1365, Woodbridge, Suffolk: Boydell Press, published 1999, →ISBN, page 67:

(heraldry, clothing, chiefly historical) Vertically divided into distinctly-coloured or patterned halves; party per pale.


mock turtleneck

en-noun

mock turtleneck (plural mock turtlenecks)

(clothing) A neck collar for a knit garment that is shorter and typically not as loose as a regular turtleneck.


standaway

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-standaway.wav

(clothing) Denoting a kind of rolled collar that stands away from the neck.


selendang

selendangs (plural)
slendang (alternative)

(clothing, Indonesia) a multipurpose sash tied around the shoulders to carry infants and groceries, or draped over the head.


nap dress

(clothing) A type of women's dress having heavy smocking, overexaggerated puff sleeves and a typically long, slightly pleated skirt.


pie crust collar

pie crust collar (countable and uncountable, plural pie crust collars)

(clothing) A high collar which has an even ruffle in the shape of a fluted pie crust.


pocket-hole

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-pocket-hole.wav

(clothing) An opening in an article of clothing that gives access to a pocket.


sunfrock

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-sunfrock.wav

(clothing) A type of women's outdoor summer dress.


XLT

XLT (countable and uncountable, plural XLTs)

(chiefly clothing) Initialism of extra large tall (the manufactured size or an item of that size).


man-tailored

[…] man-tailored skirt, which we made to her measure. We are fast acquiring the merited reputation of producing the best fitting and finest finished man-tailored garments in America.

1904, Good Housekeeping Magazine, volume 39:

(clothing) Of clothing, made in a masculine style, without feminine details such as frills.


Pamela hat

(clothing, fashion, historical) A straw hat or bonnet popular from the 1790s to the 1870s.


waterfall skirt

waterfall skirt (plural waterfall skirts)

(clothing) A skirt that is longer on one side than the other.


Cossack hat

(clothing) A warm, brimless hat that is wider at the top than at the headband, and made of either sheepskin or Persian lamb.


peekaboo dress

peekaboo dress (plural peekaboo dresses)

Coordinate term: peekaboo blouse

(clothing) A dress that is made partially or completely of fabric that is sheer or transparent and that reveals small portions of skin.


peekaboo blouse

peekaboo blouse (plural peekaboo blouses)

Coordinate term: peekaboo dress

(clothing) A blouse that is made partially or completely of fabric that is sheer or transparent and usually reveals portions of the breasts.


scoop bonnet

(clothing) A bonnet with a long narrow front in the shape of a scoop, formerly worn by women.


bubble romper

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-bubble romper.wav

(clothing) A one-piece outfit for babies and toddlers consisting of a loose and baggy fit around the lower body, creating a bubblelike shape.


Russian blouse

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-Russian blouse.wav

(clothing) A kind of loose-fitting blouse having wide sleeves, and which opens at the side, and which hangs down over the trousers.


flower crown

(clothing, monarchy) A crown made of brightly colored flowers.


tie belt

(clothing) A type of belt that is fastened around the waist with a knot.


tie-belted

(clothing) Designed or adorned with a tie belt.


carriage gown

(clothing, historical) A fashionable dress and outerwear ensemble that is worn for riding in a carriage, walking in a garden, etc.


leakguard

(clothing) On a diaper or menstrual pad, a tight barrier around the legs, usually a gusset made from firm waterproof or stay-dry materials, that prevents liquid from leaking through; a leg cuff.


after-five

[…] the women wearing after-five dresses, the men in stiff shirts, dark blue suits. It looked more like one of Reagan's state dinners, and I had no place to hide.

1986, Flying Magazine, volume 113, number 4, page 102:

(clothing) Of or pertaining to clothing that is worn for semiformal events and activities.


after-five

(clothing) Any attire or clothing that is semiformal.


business formal

(clothing) A style of professional dress that is the most formal level of business attire.


business formal

en-adj

business formal (comparative more business formal, superlative most business formal)

more business formal (comparative)
most business formal (superlative)


playshorts

(clothing) A style of clothing that combines elements of both playwear and shorts.

(clothing) Shorts meant for casual or leisure activities, particularly for younger people.


sleep shorts

(clothing) A type of lightweight shorts designed for sleeping or lounging.


church crown

Southern United States
Southern United States

(clothing, fashion, Christianity) A decorative hat worn by women in the Southern United States as a headcovering during church services.


belt buckle

(clothing) A fastening device used to secure the two ends of a belt, ensures it remains in place around the waist.


matchbox skirt

(clothing, fashion, dated) A type of skirt consisting of a boxy and rectangular shape.


macaroni dress

en-noun

macaroni dress (countable and uncountable, plural macaroni dresses)

(UK, historical, clothing) A type of extravagant and flamboyant clothing worn by a subculture of young English men in the late 18th century.