doublet

American  

[duhb-lit] / ˈdʌb lɪt /

noun

1. a close-fitting outer garment, with or without sleeves and sometimes having a short skirt, worn by men in the Renaissance.

2. an undergarment, quilted and reinforced with mail, worn beneath armor.

3. a pair of like things; couple.

4. one of a pair of like things; duplicate.

5. Linguistics. one of two or more words in a language that are derived from the same source, especially when one is learned while the other is popular, as coy and quiet, both taken from the same Latin word, quiet directly, and coy by way of Old French.

6. Printing. an unintentional repetition in printed matter or proof.

7. doublets, a throw of a pair of dice in which the same number of spots turns up on each die.

8. Jewelry. a counterfeit gem made of two pieces, either of smaller gemstones, inferior stones, or glass.

9. Optics. a compound lens made of two thin lenses shaped so as to reduce chromatic and spherical aberrations.

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doublet British  

/ ˈdʌblɪt /

noun

1. (formerly) a man's close-fitting jacket, with or without sleeves (esp in the phrase doublet and hose. )

2. 1. a pair of similar things, esp two words deriving ultimately from the same source, for example reason and ratio or fragile and frail

   2. one of such a pair

3. jewellery a false gem made by welding a thin layer of a gemstone onto a coloured glass base or by fusing two small stones together to make a larger one

4. physics

   1. a multiplet that has two members

   2. a closely spaced pair of related spectral lines

5. (plural) two dice each showing the same number of spots on one throw

6. physics two simple lenses designed to be used together, the optical distortion in one being balanced by that in the other

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Etymology

Origin of doublet

1300–50; Middle English < Middle French. See double, -et

Explanation

The fitted jacket that European men commonly wore during the Renaissance period is called a doublet. If you go to a Renaissance Faire, you'll see men wearing doublets (along with cloaks, tunics, tights, and scabbards). The French word doublet comes from duble, "double or two-fold." The original doublets were merely the lining (or "doubling") of another garment, often a hauberk, or chainmail shirt, and meant to keep the stiff material from rubbing or chafing the skin. The doublet evolved into being worn on its own, tailored to fit the body and sometimes padded to give the wearer a "fashionable" shape.

Example Sentences

"There were these big, thick, sandy doublet events where it had a fine-grained element, and on top of it was a very coarse grained sandy unit. And we were just scratching our heads," says Goldfinger.

From Science Daily • Oct. 22, 2025

It’s nearly Halloween, so two girls are dressed as a witch and a red-headed fairy; there’s also a thirtysomething man in a puffy Tudor hat, doublet, and hose.

From Slate • Jul. 7, 2025

He wears a fashionable doublet, breeches, stockings, chunky strapped shoes and a tall felt hat with a buckle in the hatband.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 6, 2025

And the prince, well, with his tights and slashed-sleeved doublet, he looks as if he stepped out of a 16th-century retelling of “Cinderella.”

From New York Times • Sep. 10, 2021

He wore a deep blue doublet studded with a double row of golden lion's heads, and around his brow a slim coronet made of gold and sapphires.

From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin

Related Words

• combination
• couple
• duo
• match
• team
• two