Plimsolls

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of lightweight canvas shoe often worn for casual activities or sports that features a flat rubber sole
2. Shoes made from canvas material with a rubber sole, commonly used for physical education or leisure activities
3. Casual footwear typically characterized by its simple design, featuring a canvas upper and a flexible rubber base suitable for various uses

Etymology: Samuel Plimsoll was a Bristol merchant who became a campaigner for safer shipping in Victorian Britain. Concerned that overloaded vessels were sinking with their crews, he pushed for a clear mark painted on each hull showing the maximum waterline a ship could safely be loaded to. That horizontal line, with its circle and cross markings, became known as the Plimsoll line, and it is the reason the shoe carries his name. The connection to footwear is a probable one rather than a documented fact. The rubber sole of the canvas shoe sits at the join between upper and sole in a way that looks much like the band painted along a ship's side, and the resemblance seems to have led to the shoe being called a plimsoll. The word is plural in form here because the shoe is worn as a pair.

Synonyms: canvas shoes, trainers, sneakers, deck shoes, sports shoes