Culotte

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A garment that merges the appearance of a skirt with the practicality of trousers, typically designed with a full silhouette and wide legs for ease of wear
2. This clothing piece offers a unique combination of skirt-like elegance and trouser functionality, usually featuring wide legs for comfort and style
3. A type of women's fashion piece that blends the characteristics of a skirt and pants, crafted to provide both elegance and comfort with a wide-leg design and a flowing silhouette

Etymology: The French "culotte" originally named a man's knee-length breeches, the fitted garment worn before long trousers became standard. Its root is "cul", the French word for buttocks, which also gives the verb "culer", meaning to strike on the rear. The word became famous during the French Revolution, when radical urban supporters of the revolution were nicknamed the "sans-culottes", meaning "without breeches". Their long trousers set them apart from the aristocratic knee-breeches of the old order. English borrowed the French word and kept its spelling. Over time the name moved from breeches to a divided garment that looks like a skirt, the sense it carries now.