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kirtle

[kur-tl]
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noun
  1. a woman's loose gown, worn in the Middle Ages.
  2. Obsolete. a man's tunic.
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Origin of kirtle

before 900; Middle English kirtel, Old English cyrtel, apparently equivalent to cyrt(an) to shorten (≪ Latin curtus shortened) + -el -le
Related formskir·tled, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for kirtle

Historical Examples

  • She put her hand to her kirtle and gripped the knife at her side.

    Eric Brighteyes

    H. Rider Haggard

  • The kirtle or petticoat is in reality a development of the tunic.

    Chats on Costume

    G. Woolliscroft Rhead

  • When the corslet was unclasped, the arrow had only to be pulled out of the belt and kirtle.

  • And I am weary withal, and this kirtle is light and easy to me.

  • He sheareth a deal from his kirtle meet, To make her sandals for her feet.

    Poems by the Way

    William Morris

British Dictionary definitions for kirtle

kirtle

noun archaic
  1. a woman's skirt or dress
  2. a man's coat
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Word Origin

Old English cyrtel, probably from cyrtan to shorten, ultimately from Latin curtus cut short
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 kirtle

n.

"a man's tunic; a woman's skirt," Old English cyrtel, related to Old Norse kyrtill "tunic;" both regarded as probably from Latin curtus "short" (see curt) + diminutive suffix -el.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper