Gladstone bag

American  

noun

1. a small rectangular suitcase hinged to open into two compartments of equal size.

---

Gladstone bag British  

noun

1. a piece of hand luggage consisting of two equal-sized hinged compartments

---

Etymology

Origin of Gladstone bag

First recorded in 1880–85; after W.E. Gladstone

Example Sentences

The ship’s pursers used Gladstone bags like this one, recovered in 1987, to transport valuables.

From New York Times

They chose the Gladstone bag, and the final signifier of the medical profession was in place.

From BBC

Suddenly, a steward entered, carrying a Gladstone bag.

From Project Gutenberg

Yet the sight of these same streets was like wine in the veins to a man who drove through them in a hansom piled with Gladstone bags and P. and O. trunks.

From Project Gutenberg

Men hurried into the mosque carrying brown Gladstone bags.

From Project Gutenberg