an outfit for women, advocated about 1850 by Amelia Jenks Bloomer, consisting of a short skirt, loose trousers gathered and buttoned at the ankle, and often a coat and a wide hat.
(used with a plural verb) bloomers,
loose trousers gathered at the knee, formerly worn by women as part of a gymnasium, riding, or other sports outfit.
women's underpants of similar, but less bulky, design.
the trousers of a bloomer outfit.
any of various women's garments with full-cut legs gathered at the bottom edge.
a plant that blooms.
a night bloomer.
a person who develops skills, abilities, interests, etc., commensurate with their capacities: See late bloomer.
She was a quiet, methodical child who became a late bloomer.
An Americanism dating to 1850–55; named after A.J. Bloomer
First recorded in 1720–30; bloom 1 + -er 1
First recorded in 1885–90; bloom(ing) (as euphemism for bloody ) + -er 1
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Inquest proceedings in the UK are looking at the deaths of Mr Lynch and his daughter, as Mr and Mrs Bloomer, who were all British nationals.
From BBC • May 9, 2025
Dr Edward Bloomer, astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich said: "There's a rare opportunity to have seven planets in essentially a convenient place for you to look for them."
From BBC • Feb. 25, 2025
"We're looking at climate change, habitat loss, and international spread of invasive species and disease," Bloomer said.
From Science Daily • Nov. 25, 2024
Bloomer says this spatial scale is meaningful for conservation planning efforts but masks the exact locations where sensitive or imperiled species were found.
From Science Daily • Nov. 25, 2024
Stanton’s cousin, Elizabeth Smith Miller, had designed the outfit in 1851, but after Amelia Bloomer published an article about “Turkish trousers” in the Lily, the “costume” was popularly referred to as “bloomers.”
From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
