fatigues

American  

[fuh-teegz] / fəˈtigz /

plural noun

1. a military uniform worn while performing manual labor or while in the field.

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Etymology

Origin of fatigues

First recorded in 1830–40

Explanation

Fatigues are the casual clothes that military personnel wear. Fatigues sometimes have a camouflage pattern. When you see Army soldiers wearing camouflage trousers and jackets, you can say they've got their fatigues on. Another name for fatigues is "battledress," as opposed to the more formal dress uniforms worn by members of all military branches. Fatigues are what soldiers wear when they're working or engaging in battle. In the 1770's, fatigues meant "extra duties of a soldier," from fatigue, or tiredness. It came to also mean "military clothing" in the mid-1880's.

Example Sentences

Witnesses told the BBC that the Israeli soldiers had arrived disguised in Lebanese military fatigues and used ambulances with signs of Hezbollah's Islamic Health Organization.

From BBC • Mar. 7, 2026

Reese has spent the past 15 years in and out of remission with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, which often fatigues him, he said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 28, 2026

Rarely, too, does "the old man who saved the country" miss a chance to recall his heroics in the bush wars, sometimes exchanging his trademark safari hat for camouflage fatigues.

From Barron's • Jan. 12, 2026

Budanov, attired in a formal suit rather than his usual fatigues, reported tangible results but gave few details.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 9, 2026

There, in his camouflaged fatigues and hiking boots, was Sean Conklin, the conservation officer of Albany County.

From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George