balbriggan

American  

[bal-brig-uhn] / bælˈbrɪg ən /

noun

1. a plain-knit cotton fabric, used especially in hosiery and underwear.

---

balbriggan British  

/ bælˈbrɪɡən /

noun

1. a knitted unbleached cotton fabric

2. (often plural) underwear made of this

---

Etymology

Origin of balbriggan

First recorded in 1855–60; after Balbriggan, town in Ireland, where first made

Example Sentences

Stripped to a suit of balbriggan underwear in one scene, Clark Gable reveals a paunch.

From Time Magazine Archive

Six changes of underwear—merino or wool—and a dozen balbriggan or woolen hose will be sufficient.

From The Complete Bachelor Manners for Men by Germain, Walter

Then, in all the glory of his brown balbriggan undershirt, he stood up in the aisle.

From Abroad at Home American Ramblings, Observations, and Adventures of Julian Street by Street, Julian

Egyptian cotton is very fine and is used mainly in the manufacture of thread and the finer grades of balbriggan underwear.

From Commercial Geography A Book for High Schools, Commercial Courses, and Business Colleges by Redway, Jacques W. (Jacques Wardlaw)

After a pause, Aunt Selina got up heavily and went upstairs, coming down soon after with a bundle covered with a green shawl, and with a white balbriggan stocking trailing from an opening in it.

From When a Man Marries by Rinehart, Mary Roberts