tunic

[too-nik, tyoo-]

noun

1. Chiefly British.,  a coat worn as part of a military or other uniform.

2. a gownlike outer garment, with or without sleeves and sometimes belted, worn by the ancient Greeks and Romans.

3. a woman's upper garment, either loose or close-fitting and extending over the skirt to the hips or below.

4. a garment with a short skirt, worn by women for sports.

5. Ecclesiastical.,  a tunicle.

6. Anatomy, Zoology.,  any covering or investing membrane or part, as of an organ.

7. Botany.,  an integument, as that covering a seed.

tunic

/ ˈtjuːnɪk /

noun

1. any of various hip-length or knee-length garments, such as the loose sleeveless garb worn in ancient Greece or Rome, the jacket of some soldiers, or a woman's hip-length garment, worn with a skirt or trousers

2. anatomy botany zoology a covering, lining, or enveloping membrane of an organ or part See also tunica

3. RC Church another word for tunicle

Other Word Forms

• subtunic noun
• supertunic noun
• undertunic noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of tunic¹

before 900; (< French tunique ) < Latin tunica; perhaps also continuing Old English tunece, tunica < Latin

Word History and Origins

Origin of tunic¹

Old English tunice (unattested except in the accusative case), from Latin tunica

Example Sentences

He cut a very dashing figure, to be sure, in a trim scarlet tunic over deep blue trousers, with a spotless white belt cinched about his waist.

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An elderly man wearing a white tunic sat alone amongst the bodies.

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A burly bearded man in a blue tunic moved swiftly through grassy stubble on a windswept road in rural Damascus, collecting bones with his bare hands.

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There’s a younger version of the character, played by Steven Booth in a cartoon muscle suit and a tunic that makes it easy to flash the audience.

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Priests wear simpler garments and a long scarf over their tunic called a red stole.

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Related Words

• blouse 
• coat 
• jacket 
• robe