Waistcoat

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈweɪs(t)kəʊt/

Definitions

1. A sleeveless garment worn over a shirt and under a jacket, typically buttoning down the front
2. A type of formal attire that is worn as a vest over a shirt and typically paired with a suit or jacket
3. This garment, often lacking sleeves, serves as an insulating layer worn over a shirt and under a coat

Etymology: A waistcoat is, quite literally, a coat for the waist: the word combines "waist" with "coat," and its earliest recorded forms show the parts plainly. Early English speakers used "waist" for the narrow part of the body between chest and hips, and "coat" for any garment worn over the upper body, so the compound describes exactly what it covers. The name is a plain descriptive compound rather than a coined term, and its form has shifted over the centuries. A related form survives in Yola, a now-extinct English dialect of Ireland, where the word appeared as "wauscoat" and "wazcoote," showing how speakers pronounced the same two parts in their own ways. The garment itself has long been a sleeveless layer worn beneath a jacket, and the word's meaning has stayed close to its literal sense throughout its history.

Synonyms: vest, gilet, jacket, topcoat, outerwear