yellow jersey

English

WOTD – 31 July 2022

Etymology

The Slovenian professional cyclist Tadej Pogačar wearing the yellow jersey (sense 1) in Paris during the final stage of the 2020 Tour de France. Pogačar was the winner of the race.

Calque of French maillot jaune: maillot (jersey, shirt; vest) + jaune (yellow, adjective).[1]

Pronunciation

  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˌjɛləʊ ˈdʒɜːzi/
  • (General American) IPA(key): /ˌjɛloʊ ˈdʒɝzi/
  • (file)
  • Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)zi
  • Hyphenation: yel‧low jer‧sey

Noun

yellow jersey (plural yellow jerseys) (cycle racing)

  1. Especially in the Tour de France: the yellow shirt worn by the leader of a stage of a cycling race, which is then awarded to the cyclist who wins the race with the fastest overall time.
  2. (by extension) A cyclist who wears such a jersey or shirt; hence, the leader of a stage of a cycling race, or the winner of a cycling race.
    • 2012 July 15, Richard Williams, “Tour de France 2012: Carpet tacks cannot force Bradley Wiggins off track”, in Alan Rusbridger, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, ISSN 0261-3077, OCLC 229952407, archived from the original on 31 March 2022:
      The timing of the incident raised the question, almost certainly destined to remain unanswered, of whether, having allowed the escapers to pass by unhindered, the culprit had waited specifically for the yellow jersey group before sowing his mischief.

Coordinate terms

Derived terms

  • yellow jersey on the road

Translations

References

  1. yellow jersey, n.” under yellow, adj. and n.”, in OED Online , Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, June 2022; yellow jersey, n.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

Further reading

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