gown
Americannoun
-
gowns
plural
-
a woman's dress or robe, especially one that is full-length.
- Synonyms:
- frock
-
a loose, flowing outer garment in any of various forms, worn by a man or woman as distinctive of office, profession, or status.
an academic gown.
-
the student and teaching body in a university or college town.
verb (used with object)
noun
-
any of various outer garments, such as a woman's elegant or formal dress, a dressing robe, or a protective garment, esp one worn by surgeons during operations
-
a loose wide garment indicating status, such as worn by academics
-
the members of a university as opposed to the other residents of the university town Compare town
verb
Synonym Usage
See dress.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of gown
1300–50; Middle English goune < Old French < Late Latin gunna fur or leather garment
Explanation
A gown is a formal dress. When your date to a party or dance is wearing a tuxedo, you'll probably want to wear a gown. There are many different kinds of gowns, including ball gowns, wedding gowns, and evening gowns. All of them are worn primarily by women on formal occasions. It was once common to call any one-piece woman's garment a gown, while now it's more often called a dress. The source of gown is the Old French goune, "robe, coat, or down," with the Latin root gunna, "hide or skin."
Vocabulary lists containing gown
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:
She said she had Lexie Ippolito to thank for it, a bride-to-be who discovered the long-lost dress in her Chicago family home and worked to reunite the gown with its rightful owner.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026
Its return is the result of an astute observation by a Chicago bride-to-be — a woman she calls a guardian angel — who now needs to find her own missing heirloom gown.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026
Because changing the diaper of a Tiny Tears is not the same as putting a Dior-inspired gown on a mature version of yourself.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2026
The Canadian superstar took to the runway at the end of L'Oreal's annual show, emerging in a sleek black gown to rapturous applause at one of the fashion calendar's most glamorous openings.
From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 2026
Night after night, in dressing gown and slippers, carrying a flashlight, Johnson would walk from his bedroom down to the situation room in the basement.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
We were surprised to find gorgeous gowns under $2,000 at Anthropologie, for example.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026
The 43-year-old said there were "pockets of people" standing around in slippers and dressing gowns after being evacuated from the building.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
It has a bridal shop overflowing with sparkly gowns and a coffee shop serving up lattes with Chinese symbols for happiness.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026
He began his career in the early 1960s and over his decades-long tenure created gowns worn by Diana Ross and the Supremes and looks worn by Joan Rivers, Barbra Streisand and Elton John.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
They seemed like a mismatched set of bookends in their flowing gowns, beads, and veils.
From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool
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