Definition of petticoat
1 : a skirt worn by women, girls, or young children: such asa : an outer skirt formerly worn by women and small childrenb : a fancy skirt made to show below a draped-up overskirtc : an underskirt usually a little shorter than outer clothing and often made with a ruffled, pleated, or lace edged archaic : the skirt of a woman's riding habit
2a : a garment characteristic or typical of womenb : woman
3 : something (such as a valance) resembling a petticoat
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Recent Examples of petticoat from the Web
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To accomplish that, costume designer Annell Brodeur engineered a billowy white shroud not unlike a wedding dress, with a wire rim and petticoats underneath.
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Small and pointy as a dagger hidden in a petticoat, Sofia Coppola’s handsome, efficient Civil War-era thriller finds the filmmaker working in surprisingly compact mode.
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The bodice featured a vintage style lace panel and the dress carried a net petticoat with lace trim underneath.
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Her seaweed collection is kept in St. Andrew’s Botanical Garden, less than 20 miles from the East Neuk of Fife, where today Fiona Houston and Xa Milne can be found, petticoat-less, pursuing the 21st-century seaweed craze.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'petticoat.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of petticoat
Middle English petycote short tunic, petticoat, from pety small + cote coat
petticoat
Definition of petticoat
: of, relating to, or exercised by women : female
First Known Use of petticoat
1620
PETTICOAT Defined for English Language Learners
petticoat
playDefinition of petticoat for English Language Learners
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: a skirt that a woman or girl wears under a dress or outer skirt
PETTICOAT Defined for Kids
petticoat
playDefinition of petticoat for Students
: a skirt worn under a dress or outer skirt
Learn More about petticoat
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See words that rhyme with petticoat Spanish Central: Translation of petticoat Nglish: Translation of petticoat for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of petticoat for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about petticoat
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