clothes

See also: cloþes

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English clothes, cloþes, plural of cloth, cloþ (cloth, garment), from Old English clāþas (clothes), plural of clāþ (cloth), equivalent to cloth + -es. Cognate with Scots clathes, claes (clothes), Danish klæder, Norwegian Bokmål klær, Norwegian Nynorsk klede, German Kleidung.

Alternative forms

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /kləʊ(ð)z/
    • (file)
  • (US) IPA(key): /kloʊ(ð)z/
    • (file)
    • (file)
  • Homophone: close (when /ð/ is omitted)
  • Rhymes: -əʊðz, -əʊz

Noun

clothes pl (plural only)

  1. (plural only) Items of clothing; apparel.
    • 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 6, in The China Governess:
      Even in an era when individuality in dress is a cult, his clothes were noticeable. He was wearing a hard hat of the low round kind favoured by hunting men, and with it a black duffle-coat lined with white.
  2. (obsolete) plural of cloth.
  3. The covering of a bed; bedclothes.
    • 1717, Matthew Prior, The Dove
      She turned each way her frighted head, / Then sunk it deep beneath the clothes.
  4. Laundry (hung on a clothesline).
Derived terms
Descendants
  • Sranan Tongo: krosi
Translations

See also

Etymology 2

clothe + -s

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /kləʊðz/
  • (US) IPA(key): /kloʊðz/
  • (file)
  • (file)
  • Rhymes: -əʊðz

Verb

clothes

  1. Third-person singular simple present indicative form of clothe

References

  • clothes in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911
  • clothes at OneLook Dictionary Search

Anagrams


Middle English

Alternative forms

Noun

clothes

  1. plural of cloth

Descendants

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