Mitt

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /mɪt/

Definitions

1. A hand covering made of soft material that has a single compartment for the fingers and is often used for warmth or various sports activities
2. A flexible garment worn on the hand consisting of a single pocket for the fingers, commonly utilized in cold conditions or athletic pursuits
3. A hand covering designed to encase the whole hand while leaving only the thumb exposed, typically used for warmth or certain physical activities

Etymology: "Mitt" is a clipping of "mitten," so its history is largely the history of that longer word. "Mitten" passed into English from Old French "mitaine," a word for a glove or mitten. The shortened form appeared once the full word had become so familiar that speakers could drop its ending without losing the sense, much as "phone" stands in for "telephone" or "bus" for "omnibus." The clipping reflects the way the word is used in everyday speech. Because "mitten" already named a glove that covers the hand but leaves the thumb free, "mitt" simply trims that name down to its core syllable. The thumb-only-glove sense is the same in both forms.

Synonyms: glove, handwear, mittens