Encolures

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The necklines or collars of garments, referring to the shaping or finishing around the neck area of clothing items
2. The part of a garment that surrounds or frames the neck, often describing the form or cut of the upper edge where it fits near the throat
3. Sections of apparel designed to encircle the neck, indicating styles or structures that define how clothing fits around that part of the body

Etymology: "Encolures" is the plural of "encolure", a word borrowed from French with the same sense: the neckline or collar region of a garment. French "encolure" describes the neck-opening of a shirt or coat, and its form reflects the French verb "encoller", to put a collar on, from "col", meaning neck or collar, which goes back to Latin "collum". The English form keeps the French spelling and plural pattern, so it reads as a foreign term reserved for tailoring and dressmaking talk. Its use is confined largely to fashion writing, where precision about the cut of a neckline matters more than the everyday word "neckline" would allow.

Synonyms: necklines, collars, neckbands