gown

noun

ˈgau̇n 

1

a

: a loose flowing outer garment formerly worn by men

b

: a distinctive robe worn by a professional or academic person

c

: a woman's dress

d(1)

: dressing gown

(2)

: nightgown

e

: a coverall worn in an operating room

2

: the body of students and faculty of a college or university

rivalry between town and gown

gown transitive verb

Synonyms

• dress

Examples of gown in a Sentence

The bride wore a lovely lace wedding gown.

a shopping trip for the express purpose of finding the perfect gown for the wedding

Recent Examples on the Web

Johnson was honored at the Zurich Film Festival last night wearing a cobalt Gucci princess gown, her latest lesson in sheer dressing. —Grace McCarty, Glamour, 26 Sep. 2025

To construct the blush pink gown, Okunlola used chantilly lace under the tulle and hand-beaded the embroidery details. —Taylor Ardrey, USA Today, 26 Sep. 2025

With 90 minutes to go, Veejay is still hand-cutting and sewing Mimi’s chainmail gown, and Ethan is dealing with the corset seams ripping out of the back of his huge circle gown. —Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 26 Sep. 2025

Durham wore a black floor-length strapless gown paired with double necklaces. —Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 25 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French gune, goune, from Late Latin gunna, a fur or leather garment

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing gown

• ball gown
• dressing gown
• evening gown
• Geneva gown
• hospital gown
• tea gown

Rhymes for gown

• bown
• clown
• crown
• drown
• frown
• lown
• noun
• town
• adown
• blowdown
• breakdown
• countdown

Kids Definition

gown

noun

ˈgau̇n 

1

: an official robe worn especially by a judge, a member of the clergy, or a teacher

2

: a woman's dress

especially : one suitable for afternoon or evening wear

3

: a loose robe (as a dressing gown or a nightgown)

gown verb

gowned

ˈgau̇nd

adjective

Medical Definition

gown

noun

ˈgau̇n 

: a garment designed to be worn by health care professionals or patients: such as

a

: a sterile one-piece coverall worn by health care personnel especially during a medical procedure to prevent the dispersal of bodily fluids or infectious material : surgical gown

b

: a loose robe that is usually open in the back and is worn by patients in a medical facility (such as a hospital) : hospital gown