jacket

[jak-it]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR jacket ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a short coat, in any of various forms, usually opening down the front.

something designed to be placed around the upper part of the body for a specific purpose other than use as clothing: a life jacket.

a protective outer covering.

the skin of a potato, especially when it has been cooked.

book jacket.

the cover of a paperbound book, usually bearing an illustration.

a paper or cardboard envelope for protecting a phonograph record.

a metal casing, as the steel covering of a cannon, the steel cover around the core of a bullet, or the water jacket on certain types of machine guns.

a folded paper or open envelope containing an official document.

verb (used with object)

to put a jacket on (someone or something).

Origin of jacket

1425–75; late Middle English jaket < Middle French ja(c)quet, equivalent to jaque jack⁴ + -et -et

Related formsjack·et·ed, adjectivejack·et·less, adjectivejack·et·like, adjectiveun·der·jack·et, nounun·jack·et·ed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for jacket

coat, tunic, fur, sheath, parka, case, casing, hide, envelope, wrapper, threads, skin, folder, pelt, wrapping

Examples from the Web for jacket

Contemporary Examples of jacket

I settle for a sweater and jacket and throw a tie in my briefcase just in case it turns out to be the prom.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days
David Freeman
December 13, 2014
Micah is 10 years old and he had a coat geared to the season, a Patagonia winter jacket with a hood.
The Wildly Peaceful, Human, Almost Boring, Ultimately Great New York City Protests for Eric Garner
Mike Barnicle
December 8, 2014
The jacket and gloves were a precaution in the event the eaglet panicked, but there was little fuss as he tossed the net over her.
He Faces Jail for Rescuing Baby Eagles
Michael Daly
November 2, 2014
On a hot day in Milwaukee once, Palmer quietly asked the assembled admirers, "Mind if I take off my jacket?"
Will the Real Jim Palmer Please Stand Up
Tom Boswell
September 27, 2014
This week, President Obama disembarked from Air Force One while holding his jacket in his left hand and a coffee cup in his right.
Obama, the Coffee Salute, and the Dementia on the Right
Sally Kohn
September 25, 2014

Historical Examples of jacket

"I'll walk a bit with you," said his sister, donning her jacket and a cap.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
Viviette, coming in later in hat and jacket, found him busily writing.
Viviette
William J. Locke
Katy's fingers were shaking as she lifted the jacket and Linda slipped into it.
Her Father's Daughter
Gene Stratton-Porter
The sleeves of her jacket had been torn, and were mended with a material of another colour.
The Dream
Emile Zola
Then tapping the breast-pocket of his jacket: “And yet I am the force,” he went on.
The Secret Agent
Joseph Conrad

British Dictionary definitions for jacket

jacket

noun

a short coat, esp one that is hip-length and has a front opening and sleeves

something that resembles this or is designed to be worn around the upper part of the bodya life jacket

any exterior covering or casing, such as the insulating cover of a boiler

the part of the cylinder block of an internal-combustion engine that encloses the coolant

See dust jacket

the skin of a baked potato
(as modifier)jacket potatoes

a metal casing used in certain types of ammunition

US a cover to protect a gramophone recordBrit name: sleeve

mainly US a folder or envelope to hold documents

verb

(tr) to put a jacket on (someone or something)

Derived Formsjacketed, adjectivejacket-like, adjective

Word Origin for jacket

C15: from Old French jaquet short jacket, from jacque peasant, from proper name Jacques James

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

Word Origin and History for jacket

mid-15c., "short garment for men," from Middle French jaquet "short coat with sleeves," diminutive of Old French jaque, a kind of tunic, probably from Jacque, the male proper name, also the generic name of a French peasant (see jacquerie), but possibly associated with jaque (de mailles) "short, tight-fitting coat," originally "coat of mail," from Spanish jaco, from Arabic shakk "breastplate." Iakke "a short, close-fitting stuffed or quilted tunic, often serving as a defensive garment" is attested in English from late 14c., and by c.1400 was being used for "woman's short tunic." Meaning "paper wrapper of a book" is first attested 1894.

jacket in Medicine

jacket

[jăk′ĭt]

n.

A fixed bandage applied around the body to immobilize the spine.

An artificial crown of a tooth composed of fired porcelain or acrylic resin.