Important Advanced Clothes Vocabulary with pictures Learn 200 words
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- Hello everyone and welcome
back to “English with Lucy.”
Today, I have a vocabulary lesson.
We are going to talk
about clothes vocabulary,
but not just the basic clothes vocabulary,
we’re going to go into detail.
When you start learning English,
one of the first things that you learn
is “socks,” “t-shirt,” “shoes,” “hat…”
But there is so much more than that.
There’s so much more advanced vocabulary.
What’s the difference
between a t-shirt bra
and a pushup bra?
Or boxers and briefs?
What would you call this
neck line style on a t-shirt?
I am going to tell you all of this.
As always, I have created a free PDF
that goes with this lesson.
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it’s got all of the vocabulary,
and it has a quiz for you
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Let’s get started with the video.
I think we should start with “underwear”
because, hopefully, that’s
what you put on first.
Now, I am going to be talking
about menswear and womenswear,
but I completely understand
that you can wear
whatever you want, regardless of gender.
We’re just going from a
vocabulary standpoint here.
Let’s start with men’s underwear.
In British English, we call
men’s underwear “pants.”
Now, in American English “pants”
is what we call “trousers.”
So if someone from the US
says, “Take off your pants,”
it means, “Take off your trousers.”
But if a British girl says,
“Take off your pants,”
she might be flirting with you.
Now, “pants” is a very general term,
but we can be more specific.
We have boxer shorts, or boxers,
and these tend to have an
elastic waist and baggy legs.
“Baggy” means loose or not tight.
Briefs, which are also known as y-fronts,
are shorter and tighter.
They’re often referred to as “snug,”
which means tight and close fitting.
We also have boxer briefs,
which have that same elasticated waist,
and they have long legs
which are tight fitting.
Now, let’s talk about the
womenswear equivalent.
In American English, they call
women’s underwear “panties.”
Now, we don’t tend to say
this in British English.
“Panties” almost sounds like
something you’d say to a child.
It sounds quite childish.
Which obviously, when you’re
talking about underwear,
doesn’t sit well with me.
In British English, we
say “pants” or “knickers.”
So that “pants” word is a
really general unisex term.
“Knickers” is generally
referring to women’s wear.
Now, we also have lots and lots
of different types of knickers.
We have briefs.
Now, these are often rudely
referred to as “granny pants”
‘cause they’re bigger,
and they’re not deemed to be attractive,
but I can think of many occasions
where having attractive underwear
is not your number one priority.
So briefs can be very, very
comfortable and convenient.
These cover you well, they are triangular,
and they come up high,
and they finish low.
If you want underwear that holds you in
and slims you and smooths your silhouette,
then you have the option
of control pants, or Spanx,
which is actually a brand name,
but because they were
sort of the pioneers,
like the Hoover…
Spanx, they were the first in the market,
so their brand name has
actually become something
that we use for any brand.
We also have boyshorts.
These are basically the womenswear
version of boxer shorts.
We also have knickers with
just a thin strip at the back.
These have many names.
You can call them a g-string.
I grew up playing the violin,
and I always found it so
funny when my G string broke.
I’d tell everyone, “Oh no,
I’ve broken my G string!”
You can also call them
“thongs” or “Brazilians.”
Thongs seems to be a really
thin strip at the back,
and Brazilians are slightly
thicker at the back.
Now, some important vocabulary: VPL
Lots of women choose to wear thongs
and Brazilians and g-strings
to avoid the VPL, which
means “visible panty line.”
This is where the edge of your underwear
can dig into your skin and
be visible through clothes.
I know I much prefer a seamless look.
“Seamless” means smooth without any joins.
A seam in clothing is
where two pieces of fabric
have been sewn together.
That’s the seam there.
Let’s also talk about bras.
These are very, very important,
or not so important nowadays.
It seems to be quite in
fashion to not wear a bra.
“Bra” is short for brassiere.
but hardly anyone says that anymore.
We just say “bra.”
There are lots of different styles.
We have a triangle bra,
which is, of course, in a triangle.
Sort of more of a bikini shape.
We have a t-shirt bra, which
is a bra that’s intended
to be invisible under your t-shirt.
A sports bra.
This has lots of control,
so there’s minimal movement
when doing exercise and running.
We have a strapless bra with no straps.
Straps are the pieces of material
that go over your shoulder.
We have a push-up bra,
sometimes referred to as a Wonderbra,
but again, Wonderbra is a brand.
But because they were one of
the early ones on the market,
lots of people got used
to saying “Wonderbra”
for every brand.
The correct brandless
term is a push-up bra,
and this is where you have
extra sponge or filling
to push up your cleavage and
to create a bustier look.
One last one we have is a bandeau.
This is a strapless piece of material,
normally without too much structure.
There are two adjectives
that you need to know
when it comes to bras:
“padded” and “underwired.”
If a bra is padded,
it means it has an
extra layer of material.
This helps you have extra shape.
If a bra is underwired,
it means it has some wiring below the cup,
again, to give extra shape.
Lots of women avoid under
wiring for comfort reasons.
Let’s move on to another
underwear section:
socks and tights,
the things you wear on
your feet and your legs.
Let’s start with socks.
We have “trainer socks,”
and these are socks that
finish just below your ankle,
so technically they should be invisible
when you wear trainers.
We also have “pop-socks,”
and these just cover the
outer part of your feet,
so that they are invisible in most shoes.
We also have ankle socks
that come up to the ankles,
mid-calf, over-the-calf, knee-high,
over-the-knee and thigh-high.
We also have what are called
“tights” in British English,
or “pantyhose” in American English.
These are like long socks that come
all the way up to your waist.
So they are joined together at the top
like a pair of leggings.
The thickness of these are
determined by the denier,
which just describes the
thickness of the yarn
or material used to make them.
20 denier pair of tights would
be very thin and transparent,
and 100 denier pair of tights
would be very thick and warm.
Stockings are a sort of cross
between a pair of tights and socks
that finish at your thigh,
but they’re normally in that
tight nylon sort of material.
Lastly, we have thermal underwear,
which we wear under our
clothes to keep us warm.
We have longjohns, which are
thermal trousers or leggings;
an undershirt, which is
usually a long-sleeved shirt…
Vests are sleeveless thermal
tops with thin straps.
In general, we would just refer
to any piece of clothing
used to keep us warm
as our “thermals.”
“Oh, I’ve got my thermals on.”
“Oh, I wish I’d put my thermals on.”
Right, we’re done with underwear.
Let’s move on to what goes
on the top half of your body.
In British English, anything that goes
on the top half of your body
is generally called a “top.”
In American English,
generally, it’s a shirt,
But a shirt in British English would imply
this has a collar,
buttons, and maybe cuffs.
One word that you will hear
a lot when talking about tops
is “sleeves” or “sleeved.”
The sleeves are the parts of the garment
that cover your arms.
If something is short-sleeved,
then it has short pieces
of material on your arm.
Long sleeves, the opposite.
We also mentioned collars,
which is the material
that can cover your neck,
and the neckline,
which is essentially a hole for your head.
I think neckline vocabulary
is very important
because different necklines
suit different people.
We have the v-neck.
We have this; this is a boat neck.
This has got a thin
kind of crescent shape.
A polo or turtle neck.
We have a cowl neck, which
has some extra material.
And we also have a crew neck,
which would be considered
the most normal style of t-shirt neck.
A sweetheart neck forms the
top shape of a love heart.
This is considered to be very feminine.
Square neck, scoop
neck, and a halter neck,
where the sleeves come up
and go around your neck.
I love halter necks in the summer.
A top can be sleeveless or strapless.
It can be strappy, or have straps.
I know my mum would say, “Oh,
I love your strappy dress,”
meaning your dress with straps.
Really thin straps can be
called “spaghetti straps”
because they looked like
a strand of spaghetti.
We could have short sleeves,
half-length sleeves,
three-quarter length
sleeves, or long sleeves.
Now, in British English, a top with straps
is usually called a “vest.”
In American English, it’s
usually called a “tank.”
Although, because here in Britain
we consume a lot of American media,
we do now use the word “tank” as well.
But when I was younger, growing up,
I would always say “vest top.”
But now I’m older, “tank top”
seems to be just as common.
This could be because brands
are more international now,
so they choose to use
the American terminology.
Something that’s very popular
at the moment, crop tops.
These are short tops that
finish under your torso,
and they show your
midriff, or your stomach.
As I said before, “shirts”
in British English
refer to tops with buttons down the front
and a collar and usually cuffs.
We also have blouses.
These are like feminine shirts.
They’re normally more loose fitting.
They don’t necessarily have the collar,
and they’re considered to
be more smart and formal.
Cuffs are the end parts of shirts,
and to seal them, we…
I don’t know why I
pinched myself just there.
To close them, but we use cufflinks.
“Cufflinks,” that’s the
accessory that many men
receive on their birthdays.
Let’s talk about the
tops that keep you warm.
In British English, we have “jumpers,”
and in American English
they call them “sweaters.”
If you said to a British person,
“Can I borrow a sweater,”
I think we would understand you,
but we might think maybe
you’re looking for sportswear.
We do have sweatshirts,
which are like hoodies but with no hood
and generally no pocket on the front.
They’re normally cotton
with tight sleeves.
Hoodies have a hood on
a pocket at the front.
We also have “jumpers” or “knitwear.”
There’s lots of different styles.
Cable knit or chunky knit.
My fiance, Will, loves
a cable knit jumper.
We also have fair-isle print,
which have that Christmas-y
design around the neck.
Striped or stripey.
And also cardigans, which
are divided down the middle
and are closed with buttons.
Now let’s talk about some
casual jackets as well.
We have a biker, or leather
jacket, made out of leather.
Denim jackets.
Bomber, or military jackets.
And baseball, or varsity jackets.
And these are an American-style jacket,
but they became very popular in the UK,
and they’re what college
students tend to wear.
We also have formal jackets.
A blazer is a more casual,
less tailored, formal jacket.
We have a tailored jacket,
which is very close fitting.
A dinner jacket, which
has satin on the lapels.
They are the parts that are
folded back on a formal jacket.
We can have jackets and coats
that are single breasted,
with one row of buttons,
or double-breasted, with
two rows of buttons.
We also have a morning coat jacket,
which has long tails at the back.
Let’s talk briefly about the
different styles of coats.
We have a trench coat,
often found in beige,
usually tied at the waist, very Burberry.
Duffel coats, which are closed using
those special wooden fasteners.
Parka jackets and rain jackets.
A ski jacket, a very puffy
one for cold weather.
We also have a shooting coat,
which is used for British country sports.
And an overcoat as well.
On colder evenings, women in particular
may choose to wear a poncho,
which is like a blanket that
goes all the way around.
It has no sleeves.
A “shawl”: a big scarf
that you can wrap around.
Or a wrap as well.
Those are alternatives to coat.
Let’s move on to the bottom
half of your body now.
We have jeans,
and we have so many
different types of jeans.
We can have high-rise,
mid-rise, or low-rise.
They can also be called
“high-waisted jeans,”
“low-waisted jeans…”
We can have skinny jeans,
straight leg jeans,
bootleg jeans, which
go out under the knee,
flared jeans as well, and mom jeans,
which are very popular now.
You can also have jeggings,
which are a cross between
jeans and leggings.
They normally have fake pockets,
and I’m really glad that
they’re not that popular anymore
because I didn’t like them.
We have leggings, which can
be high-waisted or regular.
We have “joggers” in British English,
or “sweatpants” in American English.
They are meant to be for athletic wear,
but now athletic wear is everyday wear,
and sometimes formal wear.
“Athleisure,” I think they call it.
Harem pants, which are very loose fitting.
They’ve got very low crotch,
which is the piece of
material between your legs.
Wide-leg trousers.
They’re becoming more
and more fashionable.
We also have corduroy trousers,
which are made of a
specific material, corduroy.
Cargo pants, or cargo trousers.
These are sort of military-inspired.
They’re baggier.
Chinos, these are cotton
trousers, often found in beige.
Shorts, which, of course,
are shorter trousers.
Or if you want really tiny shorts,
you can have “short
shorts” in British English
or “hot pants” in American English.
We also have skirts.
There are lots of different styles.
Starting with length, we
have mini, midi, maxi.
Mini’s really short; midi’s at your knee;
maxi is down to the ground.
Skirts can be pleated,
meaning they have ironed
folds of material.
They can be skater skirts,
which mean they go out like an ice skater.
We also have tulip skirts,
which means they come in like a tulip.
Trumpet skirts go out at
the bottom, like a trumpet.
This is all very logical.
We have tiered skirts,
also called “rara skirts.”
They’ve got lots of different
layers of material coming off.
And my favourite, a pencil skirt,
which is just a figure-hugging skirt
that normally goes mid-thigh to the knee.
We have lots of different
types of dresses as well
that go over your full body,
but one thing I want to
mention before is a jumpsuit.
So this is a full body
outfit that has trousers
as opposed to a skirt.
These are usually full length.
If you want your top
attached to your shorts,
this is normally called a
“playsuit” in British English,
or it’s called a “romper”
in American English.
Cute, short, very summery floral dresses
are called “tea dresses”
in British English
or “sundresses” in American English,
but there’s a lot of crossover.
We have fit and flare dresses,
which are tight at the top
and then go out for the skirt.
Wrap dresses, which are wrapped around you
and tied with a bow.
Maxi dresses, they go all
the way down to the floor.
Ball gowns, these are very formal dresses,
usually worn for evening events.
Peplum dresses; they were a
big fashion, weren’t they?
They are normally tight,
but have a bit at the
waist that flares out.
Bodycon dresses and pencil dresses
are usually very figure-hugging and tight.
Let’s move on to shoes.
We normally talk about
our flats or our heels.
So obviously, flat shoes have no heels,
and heels elevate your
heel off the ground.
Ballet flats are of course
inspired by ballet dancers.
Kitten heels have a tiny little thin heel.
Tall version of that is
called “stiletto heels.”
That’s with a really thin pointy heel
that is really difficult to walk on.
Platform heels have a thick
platform under the toes.
Wedges have no individual heel.
It’s just all one block at the bottom.
And we also have court shoes and pumps,
which are sort of lower heels.
When we talk about flatter shoes,
we have “trainers” in the UK,
or “sneakers” in American English.
Again, there’s lots of crossover now.
Boots: these cover your entire foot.
Sandals: these are strappy
shoes that you wear in summer.
And flip-flops, these
are also known as thongs.
These are very minimal rubber shoes
that you can wear in the summer
and normally at the beach.
We have loafers.
We also have boat shoes,
Chelsea boots, and brogues.
Finally, let’s touch on accessories.
Of course, we’d be nothing
without our sunglasses.
We can also call them “sunnies”
for short or “shades.”
We also wear watches, scarves, gloves,
a handbag, handbags, or
just bags in general.
I have heard people refer to
male handbags as “manbags.”
I’m not sure if that’s really a thing.
Why would they not just call it a bag?
We can also carry an umbrella.
And one important thing
to note is neckwear,
especially in men’s wear.
We can have a tie or a cravat.
That’s a different…
That’s like sort of a silk scarf
that you wear in place of a tie.
If you want a bow, it’s a bow tie.
We also have loads and loads and loads
of different types of hats.
A hat with a peak is called a “cap.”
You can have a visor, which
just goes around here.
There’s nothing at the top.
A beret is French inspired, of course.
A Panama hat, very nice for holidays.
We also have fedoras.
I know there are very
mixed views on fedoras
in the internet community.
Top hats, which are very tall.
My fiance wears a top hat
once a year at the races,
and I can never take him
seriously when he’s wearing it.
It looks too ridiculous because
he’s already six foot six,
which is nearly two metres,
it’s one-nine-eight,
and so to have a top hat on
as well, it’s just too much.
When we go to weddings,
sometimes, especially women,
will wear a little decoration.
It’s not quite a hat,
but it’s an accessory on their head.
We call this a “fascinator”
because it just fascinates everyone.
We also have a beanie hat or a
woolly hat, which is knitted.
And if it has a pompom on
it, we call it a bobble hat.
So cute.
Right, that is it for today’s lesson.
I hope you learned something.
I have thrown a lot of vocabulary at you.
If you want to review that
vocabulary in your own time,
please do download the PDF document.
It’s got everything we’ve
discussed today and a quiz.
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then you can try looking
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so you can use it as a
language learning tool.
That is Lucy Bella on YouTube.
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and my website, englishwithlucy.co.uk,
where I have a handmade
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where you can click on any
phoneme and hear me pronounce it.
E, no, eh.
It’s a lot of fun, and I
had a lot of fun making it.
I will see you soon for another lesson.
(blowing kiss)
Let’s move to another underwire…
Underwire.
We also have…
How the (bleep) do you pronounce" denier?"
I’ve never even thought of that.
I’ve just gone through my life.
Denier?
Oh no, that’s somebody
who denies something.
Denier, denier, yeah, so
I said it right, cool.
Good, good for me.
Chinos.
What are chinos?
Will always wears them; I have
no idea how to describe them.
What are they?
(bright music)