clothe

verb

ˈklōt͟h 

clothed or clad ˈklad  ; clothing

transitive verb

1

a

: to cover with or as if with cloth or clothing : dress

b

: to provide with clothes

the cost of feeding and clothing a family

2

: to express or enhance by suitably significant language : couch

treaties clothed in stately phraseology

3

: to endow especially with power or a quality

… the nobility in which religion and history can clothe humanity.

—D. R. Wallace

Synonyms of clothe

• dress
• garment
• apparel
• costume
• gown
• attire
• toilet
• garb

Examples of clothe in a Sentence

the cost of feeding and clothing your children

they liked to clothe the twins in identical outfits just to confuse people

Recent Examples on the Web

Eitan, 3, clutched a dinosaur while his older brother, Abel, 6, held a bright orange fox clad in a rainbow long-sleeve shirt. — Miami Herald, 25 June 2026

As usual, there’s a plethora of gross-out scenes, including a game of Twister for which the participants, clad in see-through plastic pants, have prepared by ingesting heavy-duty laxatives. — Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 25 June 2026

When the mobile launcher rig stops, soldiers clad in army green uniforms run around the truck. — Avery Schmitz, CNN Money, 24 June 2026

Meanwhile, Powell appeared to make a sneaky cameo in a photo Randolph shared that showed her feet clad in red ballet slippers next to a man’s brown leather cowboy boots. — Lara Walsh, InStyle, 21 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English clāthian, from clāth

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for clothe

• loathe

Kids Definition

clothe

verb

ˈklōt͟h 

clothed or clad ˈklad  ; clothing

1

a

: to cover with or as if with clothing : dress

b

: to provide with clothes

2

: to express in a certain way

clothe your thoughts clearly