shirt
Americannoun
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a long- or short-sleeved garment for the upper part of the body, usually lightweight and having a collar and a front opening.
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an undergarment of cotton, or other material, for the upper part of the body.
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a shirtwaist.
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a nightshirt.
idioms
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in one's shirt sleeves, without a coat: Also in one's shirt-sleeves.
It was so hot that they worked in their shirt sleeves.
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lose one's shirt, to lose all that one possesses; suffer a severe financial reverse.
He lost his shirt in the stock market.
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keep one's shirt on, to refrain from becoming angry or impatient; remain calm.
Tell him to keep his shirt on until we're ready.
noun
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a garment worn on the upper part of the body, esp by men, usually of light material and typically having a collar and sleeves and buttoning up the front
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short for nightshirt undershirt
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informal refrain from losing your temper (often used as an exhortation to another)
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informal to bet all one has on (a horse, etc)
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informal to lose all one has on (a horse, etc)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of shirt
before 1150; Middle English schirte, Old English scyrte; cognate with German Schürze, Dutch schort apron, Old Norse skyrta skirt
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:
Dressed in a Fendi shirt and Gucci glasses, Matlala did give evidence at a parallel corruption inquiry in parliament last November.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
She delights in covering her hair with a white shirt she tosses over her shoulders with mock-Breck-ad delight.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
In a group game four years ago Elfath shook the hand of Vincent Aboubakar before sending off the Cameroon striker for taking his shirt off while celebrating the winner against Brazil.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
I was like let me get the biggest shirt and make it into a dress, but I’m wearing shorts — it’s still appropriate.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
The lid comes partway off, and cold, sticky liquid seeps through the fabric of my shirt.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
He fumed when a group member suggested printing ‘Stop AI’ on purple shirts rather than red.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
But fans remained in high spirits, dancing to the beat of drums, singing patriotic songs and wearing shirts bearing the name of team captain and former Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah.
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
In my case, swapping out jackets or ties or wearing the same suit with different-color shirts are easy ways to reuse pieces without repeating outfits.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 7, 2026
Supporters who only months earlier had worried about immigration enforcement were now singing the Mexican national anthem, waving Mexican flags and wearing El Tri shirts in public fan zones packed with families.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
Dad’s choir is in whatever white shirts, black pants, and black shoes everybody could find.
From "Shine!" by J.J. and Chris Grabenstein
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
