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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.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

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:

What is it about tailoring itself that continues to fascinate you, and do you see pleasure in the discipline and restraint of a perfectly constructed garment?

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

The attribution to Samuel is based on clues including the location of the tomb, the sumptuousness of the garment, the age of the deceased and an old fracture.

From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026

Gary, 67, is a retired garment technologist from Nottinghamshire, who only discovered a love of baking about five years ago.

From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026

They are easily identified as Jewish settlers by the white tassels dangling from their hips, a religious garment worn by Orthodox men.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026

Thorn grabbed her garment bag and sprinted out the door.

From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega

One group was given compression garments; the other group was given a placebo tablet that they were told was equally as effective as compression.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026

Among them are garments created for Olympic opening ceremonies.

From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026

She pulled out her phone to show me some of her work, which included garments she’d fashioned out of Trader Joe’s tote bags.

From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2026

Salt crystals used to treat the garments were also reproduced on jackets and brooches.

From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026

Lying there in his bed without his wedding garments, he looked thin as a willow twig and very weak.

From "Homeless Bird" by Gloria Whelan

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