trousers (n.) “garment for men, covering the lower body and each leg separately,” 1610s, earlier trouzes (1580s), extended from trouse (1570s), with plural ending typical of things in pairs, from Gaelic or Middle Irish triubhas “close-fitting shorts,” of uncertain origin.
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Where does the term trouser come from?
Attested since the 1610s, from the earlier form trouzes (attested since the 1580s), extended from trouse (1570s), with plural ending typical of things in pairs, from Middle Irish triubhas (“close-fitting shorts”), of uncertain origin.
Is trousers a British word?
In the UK, we would be embarrassed if people saw our pants.
| British English | American English |
|---|---|
| Trousers | Pants |
| Pants / Underwear / Knickers | Underwear / panties |
| briefs/underpants | shorts/jockey shorts |
Why are pants called trousers?
Harmless enough to our ears, the shortened form pants alone was considered vulgar by some language commentators for quite some time, including Ambrose Bierce, who wrote the following in his 1909 book Write It Right about pants for trousers: “Abbreviated from pantaloons, which are no longer worn. Vulgar exceedingly.”
When was the word trousers used?
The usual meaning is “underpants” in the UK and “trousers” in the US. However, a secondary meaning in the US is “underpants.” The word first appeared in the US in the early 1800s as a clipped version of “pantaloons,” close-fitting men’s breeches common in the 19th century.
Why do British say pants?
In British English, pants means underpants or, informally, nonsense. In American English, pants means trousers; the singular form is used as adjective. [BrEn] He thought we were going to be absolute pants. [AmEn] His pant leg was broken.
Why do we say pants and not pant?
Pants are a singular object. Then why do we say “pants” instead of “pant”? It’s a common vagary of the English language that pants—or trousers, slacks, khakis, shorts—is always presented as a plural. It’s never pant, but rather a pair of pants.
Why do people say pair of trousers?
According to some, the phrase “pair of pants” harkens back to the days when what constituted pants—or pantaloons, as they were originally known—consisted of two separate items, one for each leg. They were put on one at a time and then secured around the waist.
Who invented trouser?
The first-ever trousers known to mankind were discovered in western China, belonging to the people of the basin. Trousers were invented since the robes were uncomfortable to wear on the horseback. The clothing when entered the antiquity, was worn by both sexes among central Asia and Iranian people.
Who wore pants first man or woman?
(Imagine riding a horse without pants on and you’ll see why.) The oldest fragments of pants found date back to these steppe tribes, who were wearing them as early as about 3,000 years ago. According to Mayor, evidence indicates that both women and men may have donned them.
What did they call trousers in medieval times?
Also, breeches (britches) was a term used by the 15th century to simply mean trousers.
Why do British say bloody?
Bloody. Don’t worry, it’s not a violent word… it has nothing to do with “blood”.”Bloody” is a common word to give more emphasis to the sentence, mostly used as an exclamation of surprise. Something may be “bloody marvellous” or “bloody awful“. Having said that, British people do sometimes use it when expressing anger…
Do Americans understand trousers?
The Macmillan dictionary says the word trousers is “mainly” British, which implies that it’s not entirely British and Americans also use it.
Why do British people say Zed?
The British and others pronounce “z”, “zed”, owing to the origin of the letter “z”, the Greek letter “Zeta”. This gave rise to the Old French “zede”, which resulted in the English “zed” around the 15th century.
Why do we say a pair of scissors?
We began calling an individual scissors a pair to emphasize the matched cutting blades. There’s precedent for it. Before we called them scissors, we called them shears, and pair was used with shears for about 100 years before scissors arrived on the scene.
Who wore the first pants?
The first recorded reports of trousers were made by sixth century BC Greek geographers. They noted the appearance of Persian, Eastern and Central Asian horse riders. The comfort they provided from extended periods on horseback made trousers a practical choice.
What is plural of scissors?
Scissors has no plural form. We put pair of or pairs of in front of the word scissors to give it its plural form. For example: One pair of scissors.
Why is a bra not called a pair?
Why the plural “bodies” (and later “bodice”) for the undergarment? Not because of the dual nature of the breasts themselves, but because the garment came in two parts and was laced together. That’s probably why the modern woman doesn’t put on “a pair of bras” in the morning.
Why are there pants but not shirts?
Because when pants, trousers, etc. were first invented they were in the form of two separate legs, each of which tied around the waist with a separate modesty piece like a breechclout which hung in front. So it was actually, literally, a pair of pants legs, not a single piece of clothing.
Why are glasses called a pair of glasses?
One piece of glass that was held in place, often by squinting. So a pair of glasses is just that. A pair of binoculars, is also easy. In the early form, it was a telescope.
When did men stop wearing dresses?
However, long gowns and full-skirted coats remained an acceptable and fashionable part of men’s wardrobe until the first half of the 20th century. The clear gender divide in clothing arrived shortly after World War II ended in the 1950s.