button-down

American  

[buht-n-doun] / ˈbʌt nˌdaʊn /

adjective

1. (of a shirt collar) having buttonholes so it can be buttoned to the body of the shirt.

2. (of a shirt) having a button-down collar.

3. (of a shirt) having buttons down the front from the collar to the bottom.

4. Also buttoned-down (especially of attitudes, opinions, etc.) extremely conventional; unimaginative.

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button-down British  

adjective

1. (of a collar) having points that are fastened to the garment with buttons

2. (of a shirt) having a button-down collar

3. Also: buttoned-down.  conventional or conservative

   a button-down corporate culture

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Etymology

Origin of button-down

An Americanism dating back to 1930–35

Example Sentences

She’s in full hair and makeup, dressed in a gray vest suit with a blue button-down underneath.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 4, 2026

You’d think that the night was done by the time he returns to the stage, soaking wet, having discarded the vest he wears over his white button-down shirt.

From Salon • May 28, 2026

“Margo has a favorite alien T-shirt. And then in an early episode, she has another button-down shirt that has an alien. Hopefully, the viewers notice that it’s in her subconscious.”

From Los Angeles Times • May 20, 2026

Eugene Levert, chain-smoking next to a stack of books while wearing a vertical blue-striped button-down and khaki slacks, looked the scholarly mirror of Doug Lamplugh, in a horizontal blue-striped polo and khaki shorts.

From Slate • May 4, 2026

She wore her usual jeans and black button-down, with her brown curls loose around her shoulders.

From "The Science of Breakable Things" by Tae Keller