pantyhose

Etymology

It is a compound from English panty + hose, panty being the singular form of panties.^[2][3][4][5] Panties is shortened from the plural of pantaloon according to the OED,^[2] and a diminutive of pants according to Etymonline.^[3] The spelling pantihose takes its i from the plural panties.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Women's thin, usually nylon tights: 1959, in an advertisement in McCall's magazine.^[2][6] Dictionary.com dates the word to 1960–65, and Etymonline to 1963.^[5][3]

Semantic evolution

The word is taken in the plural, like tights and trousers.^[2][6] It is the usual term in the United States, Canada and New Zealand, where the British say tights;^[4] in British English tights for the stocking garment goes back to 1897, though it first meant men's close breeches (1827).^[2]

Timeline

• 1959 – women's thin tights, usually of nylon.^[2][6]

Meanings

Noun

1. A woman's close-fitting one-piece garment of thin, usually nylon hosiery, covering the legs and body up to the waist and worn instead of stockings; usually treated as plural: Her pantyhose were laddered from the bike chain.^[4][6][2]

Related words

• panties
• hose
• hosiery
• pantaloon
• pants

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
5. ^ a b c Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
6. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster