button-down
Americanadjective
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(of a shirt collar) having buttonholes so it can be buttoned to the body of the shirt.
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(of a shirt) having a button-down collar.
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(of a shirt) having buttons down the front from the collar to the bottom.
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Also buttoned-down (especially of attitudes, opinions, etc.) extremely conventional; unimaginative.
adjective
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(of a collar) having points that are fastened to the garment with buttons
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(of a shirt) having a button-down collar
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Also: buttoned-down. conventional or conservative
a button-down corporate culture
Etymology
Origin of button-down
An Americanism dating back to 1930–35
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.
Stewart, to fulfill her Halloween homeless fantasy, donned a damaged knit cardigan, torn patchwork jeans and an oversize flannel button-down, according to screenshots of her deleted post.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026
How could it be that the elf in a button-down shirt now looked like someone’s cool bisexual cousin!
From Slate ● Oct. 3, 2026
Taylor, our cheery guide, met us wearing a short-sleeved button-down shirt and a bow tie.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
Wearing blue jeans and a pink button-down blouse, she echoed the pastel blues and pinks that appear throughout many of the works surrounding her.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
He reminded me of someone out of a Beverly Cleary book, with his plaid short-sleeve button-down shirt, cuffed jeans, and black Converse high-tops.
From "The First Rule of Punk" by Celia C. Pérez
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
