gilet

Meaning

1. (historical) A waistcoat worn by a man.
2. (historical) A bodice worn by a woman similar to a man's waistcoat; also, a decorative panel at the front of such a bodice, or worn separately.
3. (broadly) A sleeveless jacket resembling a waistcoat but generally closed at the neck; specifically, one which is padded to provide warmth.

Synonyms

cardigan

pinafore

singlet

slipover

tank top

vest

waistcoat

Translations

gilet

Weste

panciotto

vest

colete

chaleco

suéter

Strickjacke

sweater

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈʒiːleɪ/

Etymology

Cognate with Italian: gilè

Cognate with Arabic: جَلِيقَة

In summary

Borrowed from French gilet (“vest, waistcoat”), from regional Italian gileccu (Calabria), gilecco (Genoa), gelecco (Naples), ggileccu (Sicily), etc. (standard Italian gilè is borrowed from French), from Turkish yelek (“jelick; vest, waistcoat”) (ultimately from Proto-Turkic *yẹl (“wind”, noun)) with the final syllable modified to match other types of clothing such as corselet and mantelet. The Oxford English Dictionary does not regard the French word as having derived from Arabic جَلِيقَة (jalīqa), which it views as a recent borrowing from Italian into Algerian Arabic. Doublet of jelick.