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garment

American  
[gahr-muhnt] / ˈgɑr mənt /

noun

  • garments
    plural
  1. any article of clothing.

    dresses, suits, and other garments.

    Synonyms:
    costume, dress, garb, apparel, attire
  2. an outer covering or outward appearance.


verb (used with object)

  1. to clothe, dress, or cover.

garment British  
/ ˈɡɑːmənt /

noun

  1. (often plural) an article of clothing

  2. outer covering

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. (tr; usually passive) to cover or clothe

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

Etymology

Origin of garment

1300–50; Middle English garnement < Old French garniment, equivalent to garni ( r ) to garnish + -ment -ment

Explanation

A garment is a piece of clothing. The area of New York City where clothes are manufactured is known as the Garment District. Derived from the French word for "equipment," garment is a somewhat generic term you can use when the specific kind of clothing you're describing is not the point. A dress, for example, is a dress, and pants are pants. They are not the same thing, unless you refer to them both as garments, in which case they are the same thing.

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Vocabulary lists containing garment

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:

Gold and silver inlay work and green agate stones complete the garment.

From Barron's Aug. 22, 2026

It is believed the NBA legend wore the garment during the 1972 Finals.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 31, 2026

For example, an Indian garment exporter must actively tell a UK buyer that the import duty on shirts has fallen from 12% to zero and renegotiate prices or contracts accordingly.

From BBC Jul. 14, 2026

He blunders on Warren Buffett, stating that his company, Berkshire Hathaway, hasn’t made a garment “in over fifty years,” but the company only closed its textile operations 41 years ago.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 1, 2026

Basta took off his jacket and went slowly over to the window, holding the garment in his left hand.

From "Inkheart" by Cornelia Funke

When I defended the author and the decision to run his op-ed, there was more rending of garments.

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 26, 2026

“It’s not about garments coming across the border and putting a new label on it.”

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 26, 2026

The garments that they could not find, such as Bessette’s wedding dress, her rehearsal dinner dress and a tan and black ruffle coat from Yamamoto, they re-created using historical images and input from the designers.

From Los Angeles Times Aug. 19, 2026

The Schoolwear Association says the plans could mean parents spend more on replacing lower-quality generic garments, which might not last as long as branded ones.

From BBC Aug. 10, 2026

His beard, very long and forked, was white, nearly as white as the snow-white cloth of his garments.

From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien

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