trousseau

noun

trous·seau ˈtrü-(ˌ)sō

trü-ˈsō

plural trousseaux ˈtrü-(ˌ)sōz

trü-ˈsōz

or trousseaus

: the personal possessions of a bride usually including clothes, accessories, and household linens and wares

Did you know?

Trousseau is a descendant of the French verb trousser, meaning "to truss" or "to tuck up." Fittingly, a bride might truss, or bundle, a variety of items as part of her trousseau—and it is not too surprising that truss is also a trousser descendant. A less common descendant of trousser is retroussé, meaning "turned up," as in a "retroussé nose." The ultimate origin of trousser is likely the Latin verb torquēre, which means "to twist." Torquēre has many descendants in the language, among them a number of "tort" words (distort, contort, retort, extort), torque, and torture.

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web But the bride was allowed 100 extra ration coupons for her trousseau. —

Jill Lawless, ajc, 8 Sep. 2022 But the bride was allowed 100 extra ration coupons for her trousseau. —

Danica Kirka, BostonGlobe.com, 8 Sep. 2022 But the bride was allowed 100 extra ration coupons for her trousseau. —

Danica Kirka, The Salt Lake Tribune, 8 Sep. 2022 But the bride was allowed 100 extra ration coupons for her trousseau. —

Danica Kirka, Jill Lawless And Sylvia Hui, Anchorage Daily News, 8 Sep. 2022 Wallis Simpson, who orders many pieces for her trousseau from Schiaparelli, will be photographed in a lobster dress by Cecil Beaton for Vogue. —

Laird Borrelli-persson, Vogue, 1 July 2022 The divorce colonists who still refused to associate with the woman counted 15 new frocks—a wedding trousseau, to be sure. —

April White, Smithsonian Magazine, 24 May 2022 Many of his wines are made with non-mainstream varieties such as mondeuse and trousseau. —

Michael Alberty | For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 18 Jan. 2022 The Queen is Rorick’s Calaveras County blend of trousseau noir, mondeuse, zinfandel, barbera, and grenache. —

oregonlive, 9 Apr. 2020 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'trousseau.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.