polo shirt

American

noun

a short-sleeved, pullover sport shirt, usually of cotton or cottonlike knit, with a round neckband or a turnover collar.

polo shirt British

noun

a knitted cotton short-sleeved shirt with a collar and three-button opening at the neck

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of polo shirt

First recorded in 1915–20

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

An impeccable, crisp-collared rugby shirt—over a polo shirt.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026

I pull a brown polo shirt from an overstuffed rack and press it against me.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 13, 2026

It took something as simple as a white polo shirt and styled it differently for different generations.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 22, 2025

Red polo shirt, black pants from Kohl’s, Dashboard Confessional and Weezer echoing from the kitchen while the prep crew scrubbed down the line.

From Salon • May 19, 2025

She sighed and rested her head on the shoulder of Tee’s designer polo shirt.

From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023