costume
Americannoun
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a style of dress, including accessories and hairdos, especially that peculiar to a nation, region, group, or historical period.
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dress or garb characteristic of another period, place, person, etc., as worn on the stage or at balls.
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fashion of dress appropriate to a particular occasion or season.
dancing costume; winter costume.
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a set of garments, especially women's garments, selected for wear at a single time; outfit; ensemble.
verb (used with object)
adjective
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of or characterized by the wearing of costumes.
a costume party.
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meant for use with or appropriate to a specific costume.
costume accessories.
noun
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a complete style of dressing, including all the clothes, accessories, etc, worn at one time, as in a particular country or period; dress
national costume
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old-fashioned a woman's suit
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a set of clothes, esp unusual or period clothes, worn in a play by an actor or at a fancy dress ball
a jester's costume
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short for swimming costume
verb
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to furnish the costumes for (a show, film, etc)
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to dress (someone) in a costume
Related Words
See dress.
Other Word Forms
- recostume verb (used with object)
- uncostumed adjective
- well-costumed adjective
Etymology
Origin of costume
1705–15; < French < Italian: usage, habit, dress; doublet of custom
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Studio costume designers, including Howard Greer and, later, Jean Louis, put together flight attendant fashion.
From Los Angeles Times
Therrien’s beards — fashioned from synthetic hair, plaster, stainless steel or aluminum — hang on wardrobe stands from hooks that would go over the wearer’s ears as part of a costume.
From Los Angeles Times
When neither works, Nora tears at her costume and hair before being calmed to a lull by stagehands who successfully manage to get their star in front of the audience and on her mark.
From Salon
And who thought that would be enough feathers for the Carnival costumes?
In 1961, a small child looks with fear into the eyes of a costumed Santa in New York City, a primal reaction that transcends decades.
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.
