blouse

American  

[blous, blouz] / blaʊs, blaʊz /

noun

1. a usually lightweight, loose-fitting garment for women and children, covering the body from the neck or shoulders more or less to the waistline, with or without a collar and sleeves, worn inside or outside a skirt, slacks, etc.

2. a single-breasted, semifitted military jacket.

3. a loose outer garment, reaching to the hip or thigh, or below the knee, and sometimes belted.

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verb (used without object)

bloused, blousing

1. to puff out in a drooping fullness, as a blouse above a fitted waistband.

verb (used with object)

bloused, blousing

1. to dispose the material of a garment in loose folds, as trouser legs over the tops of boots.

blouse British  

/ blaʊz /

noun

1. a woman's shirtlike garment made of cotton, nylon, etc

2. a loose-fitting smocklike garment, often knee length and belted, worn esp by E European peasants

3. a loose-fitting waist-length belted jacket worn by soldiers

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verb

1. to hang or make so as to hang in full loose folds

Other Word Forms

• blouselike adjective
• blousy adjective
• unbloused adjective

Etymology

Origin of blouse

1820–30; < French, perhaps from the phrase *vêtement de laine blouse garment of short (i.e., uncarded, pure) wool; compare Provençal ( lano ) blouso pure (wool) < Old High German blōz naked, cognate with Old English bleat poor, miserable

Example Sentences

Wode Maya declared that it was not a ''blouse'', and that ''the president is intentionally promoting the local garment industry both within and beyond our borders''.

From BBC

“Can you tell me what a blouse has in common with a vest?” she asked.

From Literature

The opening finds her futzing over the neckline of her inauguration day blouse before telling the tailors to slice into the fabric with scissors.

From Los Angeles Times

She had rejected the extravagantly frilled silver blouse they tried to put her in and selected a thin, emerald-green jersey, tucked into the trousers.

From Literature

She takes off her glasses and begins cleaning them with the tail of her blouse.

From Literature

Related Words

• bodice
• pullover
• turtleneck