Shirtsleeves

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The arms of a shirt left bare when no jacket or coat is worn over it ; informally, the state of working or dressing casually without a jacket
2. Sleeves of a shirt that show when someone takes off their coat ; a casual, jacketless way of working or appearing in public
3. The part of a shirt covering the arms, seen when a jacket is set aside ; the relaxed, coatless look of someone working with bare sleeves

Etymology: "Shirtsleeves" is the plural of "shirtsleeve," a compound of "shirt" and "sleeve." The first element, "shirt," comes from Old English "scyrte," a short garment worn next to the skin, and "sleeve" comes from Old English "slēfe," the part of a garment that covers the arm. Put together, the compound names the arm-covering part of a shirt, and the plural form is used most often in the phrase "in shirtsleeves," meaning wearing a shirt without a jacket or coat over it.