espadrille
Americannoun
-
espadrilles
plural
-
a flat shoe with a cloth upper, a rope sole, and sometimes lacing that ties around the ankle.
-
a casual shoe resembling this, often with a wedge heel instead of a flat sole.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of espadrille
1860–65; < French < Provençal espardilho, diminutive of espart esparto
Explanation
An espadrille is a casual summer shoe that's made of cotton canvas with a rope sole. Espadrilles are easy to slip on and kick off. Espadrilles are a lightweight shoe with a flat sole made of ropy fibers. The upper part of an espadrille is sturdy canvas, often brightly colored or striped. Espadrilles were originally made in the Pyrenees, and there are shops in Spain that have been producing the sandals for over a hundred years. The names comes from the Catalan espardenya, "a type of shoes made with espart," a wiry grass used to make rope.
Vocabulary lists containing espadrille
Persepolis
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Finishing Touches: Words for Accessories
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Americanah
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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.
See Examples For:
The shoe of the season is an unfussy espadrille, substituting the sneaker of recent seasons, and which Armani himself wore, showing them off with an ironic laugh.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 20, 2022
“We started with iconic Toms espadrille silhouettes that incorporate effortless California style with Clare’s French influence,” said John Whitledge, creative director of Toms.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2018
For more than six months, there lay, in the restaurant’s cramped subterranean office, a single wedge espadrille on its side.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 17, 2016
“I thought that would give the whole collection a different twist, just to have the espadrille, which is THE Spanish shoe,” Copping said.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 15, 2015
It was cold out, but she wore platform espadrille sandals: house slippers, she explained, so that she can be as tall as Miral.
From New York Times ● Mar. 23, 2011
The frilly dresses, pastel ties and even the first lady’s sky-high espadrilles boldly Eastered on.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 18, 2022
“Now I put on what I love to wear in California — a pretty, long, silky-cotton dress with espadrilles, which were brand-new and very cute,” she said.
From New York Times ● Aug. 18, 2021
Vacation-ready accessories include totes and handbags, fisherman hats, sunglasses, espadrilles, sandals, moccasins and sneakers.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 26, 2021
Enjoy shopping for new spring espadrilles, but OMG DON’T DIE… As we have often talked about before, the process of re-opening will be more gradual and tentative than the closure was.
From Fox News ● May 1, 2020
Not that Dike would ever wear those shoes that looked like espadrilles.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
