pea jacket

American  

noun

1. a short coat of thick wool, usually double-breasted and navy in color, worn by seamen, fishermen, etc.

2. a jacket or short coat styled like this, worn by adults and children.

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pea jacket British  

/ ˈpiːˌkəʊt /

noun

1. a sailor's short heavy double-breasted overcoat of navy wool

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Etymology

Origin of pea jacket

1715–25, pea, variant spelling of pay, pee, pie coat of coarse woolen cloth ( late Middle English pee, pey, pie; akin to Dutch pij, dialectal Frisian pey, dialectal Swedish paje ) + jacket; perhaps modeled on Frisian (N dial.) pijekkat

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pea jacket

The exhibit also includes Notorious B.I.G.’s red leather pea jacket, worn in the music video for Junior M.A.F.I.A.’s “Players Anthem,” and LL Cool J’s red Kangol bucket hat.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 7, 2023

She would have looked ravishing in a cheongsam under a pea jacket or a long black coat lined with Asian flower silk.

From New York Times ● Mar. 7, 2010

Beside the bridge, Signalman 1st Class Ralph Moore, pea jacket buttoned tight, watch cap pulled down over his ears, fiddled with a blinker signal.

From Time Magazine Archive

The tall man in the London-tailored suit and woolen muffler sipped his coffee and carefully observed the husky blond in the pea jacket.

From Time Magazine Archive

But all seemed settled until the shipmaster casually told him he must furnish his own blankets, oilskins, sea boots, warm pea jacket.

From "Johnny Tremain" by Esther Hoskins Forbes