jerkin

Everyday

1. A short, close-fitting jacket without sleeves, often of leather, worn by men in the 1500s and 1600s. tree →
2. A modern sleeveless jacket, especially a work or high-visibility one. tree →

In the lessons

History lessons about Tudor and Stuart clothes; costumes in plays and stories of olden days. In stories it tells the reader about a character's old-fashioned dress, such as a soldier or a woodman.

Examples

• The Tudor man wore a leather jerkin over his shirt. tree →
• For the play I wore a brown jerkin and a hat. tree →
• The archers wore jerkins and carried longbows. tree →
• Builders wear bright yellow jerkins on site. tree →
• In the picture, the knave wears a red jerkin. tree →
• The woodcutter's jerkin was torn by brambles. tree →
• The master no longer wore the white garments of the day before, but a black jerkin, held in its place by a leathern girdle with huge clasps. tree →

Note

Plural: jerkins. A historical clothing word; today «vest» (UK: «waistcoat» or «gilet») is used for similar clothes.