underwear English · revision 10781

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=compound|attested=1870|origins=en under|origins=en wear}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: UK /ˈʌn.də.weə/, US /ˈʌn.dɚ.wer/^(Roach et al. 2011)

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+ ==Etymology==

+ It is a compound of [[under]] and [[wear]] (noun), so called because it is worn under one's clothing.^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024)

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+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Undergarments, underclothes in general: 1870 in Merriam-Webster, 1872 in Etymonline and the OED.^(MWU 2024)^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

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+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The Century Dictionary (1891) labelled it “a trade term”.^(Etymonline) The OED also records the sense of the wearing of underclothes.^(OED 1989)

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+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1870 – underwear.^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1872 – first OED quotation.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1891 – called a trade term.^(Etymonline)

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+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # Clothes worn under other clothes, next to the skin; [[underclothes]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

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+ ==Word family==

+ * [[long underwear]]

+ * [[thermal underwear]]

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+ ==Related words==

+ * [[wear]]

+ * [[under]]

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+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}