clothes

[ klohz, klohthz ]

plural noun

1. garments for the body; articles of dress; wearing apparel.

   Synonyms: garb, costume, raiment, attire, clothing

2. bedclothes.

clothes

/ kləʊðz /

plural noun

1. 1. articles of dress
   2. ( as modifier ) vestiary

      clothes brush

2. See bedclothes
   short for bedclothes

Word History and Origins

Origin of clothes¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English clāthas, plural of clāth cloth

Word History and Origins

Origin of clothes¹

Old English clāthas, plural of clāth cloth

Example Sentences

Growing up as a teen in the 1960s, she had yearned to wear the same clothes her girlfriends wore.

From The Daily Beast

Her daughter, Elaina, 24, a trained costume designer and makeup artist, helps out by sewing clothes.

From The Daily Beast

BEIRUT—It is December, but Sabrine Omar is still wearing her summer clothes.

From The Daily Beast

They dye their hair and alter their clothes, but not enough to attract attention from authorities.

From The Daily Beast

In St. Louis, I believe, for a change of clothes and to go to a nightclub.

From The Daily Beast

At this same time they seized in Nangasaqui a servant of the father provincial, Matheo Couros, who was washing his clothes.

From Project Gutenberg

Not a dollar did he possess—not even did he have a suit of clothes any more, and wore every day his corduroys.

From Project Gutenberg

For six days Mamma wept at intervals, and showed the woman in black all Punch's clothes—a liberty which Punch resented.

From Project Gutenberg

Little boys when decking themselves out with tall hat and monstrously big clothes seem to be trying to put on an alarming aspect.

From Project Gutenberg

The door opened and a plain clothes detective entered the office.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• attire
• garb
• regalia
• sportswear
• wardrobe

How Do You Spell Clothes?

Spelling tips for clothes

The word clothes is hard to spell for two reasons. First, it sounds like the verb close, but it is spelled differently. Also, the word clothes is different from the plural of cloth (cloths), but the two are easily confused for one another. 

How to spell clothes: You aren’t finished putting on clothes until you’ve tied Each Shoe (-es). Remembering that you need Each Shoe, or -es, at the end to finish getting dressed can help you spell clothes correctly.