codpiece

noun

cod·​piece ˈkäd-ˌpēs How to pronounce codpiece (audio)
: a flap or bag concealing an opening in the front of men's breeches especially in the 15th and 16th centuries

Examples of codpiece in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web On Monday,YouTube star and singer Jojo Siwa inverted the fad by donning a codpiece for a headline-grabbing cover shoot with LadyGunn magazine. Leah Dolan, CNN, 25 Sep. 2024 Titus just chucks his codpiece at him and tells him to clean it. Jack King, Vulture, 11 Apr. 2024 Like so much in fashion, the jockstrap had obvious antecedents (the medieval codpiece among them), said Valerie Steele, director and chief curator of The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. Leanne Italie, Quartz, 7 Mar. 2024 In truth, many elements of a traditional Westwood show were there — the high platform shoe, the reference to 18th and 19th century dress, an irreverent glimpse of a butt cheek, even the codpieces seemed to be a nod to the brand’s history pioneering of underwear as outerwear in the 1980s. Leah Dolan, CNN, 4 Mar. 2024 See all Example Sentences for codpiece 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'codpiece.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English codpese, from cod "bag, scrotum" (going back to Old English codd, akin to Middle Dutch codde "cylindrical piece of wood," Old Frisian kudda "cudgel," Middle Low German kudde, kodde "hog," Old Norse koddi "pillow, scrotum," all from a Germanic base denoting something distended and unevenly shaped) + pese piece entry 1

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of codpiece was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near codpiece

Cite this Entry

“Codpiece.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/codpiece. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

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