Frock
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Frock has been used since Middle English as the name for an article of clothing for men and women (see also clothing terminology).
History of the Frock
Originally, a frock was a loose, long garment with wide, full sleeves, such as the habit of a monk or priest, commonly belted. (This is the origin of the modern term defrock or unfrock, meaning "to eject from the priesthood").
The term has been continually applied to various types of clothing, generally denoting a loosely fitted garment:
- From the sixteenth century to the early twentieth century, frock was applied to a woman's dress or gown, in the fashion of the day, often indicating an unfitted, comfortable garment for wear in the house, or (later) a light overdress worn with a slip or underdress.
- From the seventeenth century on, a frock is a thigh- or full-length loose outer garment worn by shepherds, workmen, and farm workers in the Britain, generally of heavy linen with a broad flat collar, now usually called a smock-frock. In some areas, this traditional frock buttons up the front in the manner of a coat, while in others it is a pullover style.
- In the eighteenth century in Britain and America, a frock was an unfitted men's coat for hunting or other country pursuits, with a broad, flat collar, derived from the traditional working-class frock.
- Frock (especially in the phrase 'short frock') is also a child's dress or light overdress.
- A frock is a dense knitted overgarment worn by sailors and fishermen, as guernsey frock, jersey frock (now usually simply guernsey and jersey).
Related terms
A frock coat is a men's coat style of the nineteenth century, characterized by full skirts reaching to the lower thigh or knee.
See also
References
- Oxford English Dictionary
- Picken, Mary Brooks: The Fashion Dictionary, Funk and Wagnalls, 1957.
External links
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