petticoat
/ˈpɛt.ɪ.koʊt/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.63 in modern English
13
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A type of ornamental skirt or underskirt, often displayed below a dress; chiefly in plural, designating a woman's skirts collectively.
Archaic
noun
A light woman's undergarment worn under a dress or skirt, and hanging either from the shoulders or (now especially) from the waist; a kind of slip, worn to make the skirt fuller, or for extra warmth.
noun
A bell-mouthed piece over the exhaust nozzles in the smokebox of a locomotive, strengthening and equalising the draught through the boiler-tubes.
Example Sentences
- "“Yes, and her petticoat; I hope you saw her petticoat, six inches deep in mud, I am absolutely certain; and the gown which had been let down to hide it not doing its office.” “Your picture may be very exact, Louisa,” said Bingley; “but this was all lost upon me. I thought Miss Elizabeth Bennet looked remarkably well when she came into the room this morning. Her dirty petticoat quite escaped my notice.”"
- "petticoat influence"
- "a petticoat affair"
- "Phœb[us]. Know you the Reaſon of this preſent Summons? […] / Merc[ury]. And Venus may know more than both of us, / For 'tis ſome Petticoat Affair I gueſs."
Etymology
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: petticote
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈpɛt.ɪ.koʊt/
- British English: /ˈpɛt.ɪ.kəʊt/