trousers
Americannoun
-
Also called pants. Sometimes a usually loose-fitting outer garment for the lower part of the body, having individual leg portions that reach typically to the ankle but sometimes to any of various other points from the upper leg down.
plural noun
-
a garment shaped to cover the body from the waist to the ankles or knees with separate tube-shaped sections for both legs
-
US equivalent: wear the pants. informal to have control, esp in a marriage
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of trousers
1585–95; trouse (variant of trews ) + (draw)ers (in the sense “undergarment with legs”)
Compare meaning
How does trousers compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
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.
In December, she posted a TikTok showing off an oversize crew neck and pajama-like black trousers, playfully captioned “putting the casual in business casual.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 23, 2026
Blessing, who is also 17, said it was not just skirts - you could also be picked on for trousers that were too tight.
From BBC • Jun. 22, 2026
"Even though it's not that perfect, there are still parts of it that surprised me," such as folding a pair of trousers "quite well", she said.
From Barron's • Jun. 11, 2026
Willy Chavarria sunglasses on, textured Ferragamo trousers glittering with each camera flash, she strides through without pausing.
From Los Angeles Times • May 13, 2026
The housekeeper had changed out of her usual buckled shoes and voluminous floral-print dress, and into a pair of sturdy boots and a borrowed shirt and trousers from one of the farmhands.
From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood
![]()
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.