crinoline

American  

[krin-l-in] / ˈkrɪn l ɪn /

noun

• crinolines
  plural

1. a petticoat of haircloth or other stiff material, worn under a full skirt to keep it belled out.

2. a stiff, coarse cotton material for interlining.

3. a hoop skirt.

4. a reinforcement of iron straps for holding together brickwork, as of a furnace or chimney.

---

crinoline British  

/ ˈkrɪnəlɪn /

noun

1. a stiff fabric, originally of horsehair and linen used in lining garments

2. a petticoat stiffened with this, worn to distend skirts, esp in the mid-19th century

3. a framework of steel hoops worn for the same purpose

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• crinolines
  plural

---

Etymology

Origin of crinoline

1820–30; < French < Italian crinolino, equivalent to crino horse-hair (≪ Latin crīnis hair) + lino flax < Latin līnum; cf. linen

---

Explanation

Crinoline is a stiff, coarse type of fabric that can make some clothes rigid. If you want an extra puffy skirt, put a layer of crinoline under it. You ever notice how a hat is stiffer than other clothes? The material that often makes it stiff is called crinoline. Crinoline also used to be popular as material in woman's skirts, the kind of skirts that were two or three times wider than the woman: crinoline helped achieve that effect. Crinoline was originally made with horsehair, but now material with the same purpose is still called crinoline, though it might have a different composition.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

crinoline crinolines

There is also a costume inspired by crinoline, the stiff or structured petticoat designed to hold out a skirt or tutu, but whimsically reimagined using neoprene.

From Barron's ● Feb. 12, 2026

She styled the tailored look with a headpiece featuring a crinoline base with a layer of tulle and merry widow veiling, adorned with a ribbon bow.

From Washington Times ● May 6, 2023

Jean Milton Ellis, the sixth woman to wear it, added a crinoline to “give it a little boost” and avoid modifying the hem.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 21, 2022

Full leather midcentury skirts in butter yellow and lavender, bulked out not by a crinoline, but by an acre of fringe.

From New York Times ● Feb. 27, 2022

She was sitting between her parents on the overstuffed sea-foam-green sofa, a large girl herself, wearing a white crinoline dress with a ruffled hem and puffed sleeves.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

Skirts could be very full, with crinolines underneath, or they could be pencil skirts, worn with cinch belts and sweaters with bat-wing sleeves.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2025

Tattoos disappeared under rose pink frills, corsets were tightened, crinolines were adjusted and propped, pearls shone on their necks and ears.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 20, 2023

But close up, they were meticulously and gorgeously constructed; their rough-hewed, blunted exteriors encased in thoughtful and ergonomic scaffolding, buttresses of padded wiring, canvas boning, industrial-strength crinolines.

From New York Times ● Apr. 26, 2017

J.Crew showed a quirky mix of Fair Isle sweaters over pleated skirts and crinolines, as well as full trousers and dramatics blouses — all of it on nonprofessional models.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 17, 2017

They have layers of tulle and are propped up underneath with crinolines, and I worry about the hooks coming unfastened.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---