different between slacks vs trousers

English

Noun

slacks

1. plural of slack

Noun

slacks pl (plural only)

1. (dated) Semi-formal trousers that are less formal than those part of a suit but suitable for wearing in most offices and therefore nowadays no longer considered casual trousers. (Takes a plural verb even when referring to a single pair; may be referred to as a pair of slacks)
   • 1957, J. D. Salinger, "Zooey", in, 1961, Franny and Zooey:

     Not five minutes later, Zooey, with his hair combed wet, stood wet, stood barefoot at the washbowl, wearing a pair of beltless dark-gray sharkskin slacks, a face towel across his bare shoulders.

Usage notes

The term is old-fashioned and now used mostly by older people and by the clothing industry in the US. (It was never common in British English.) Despite being no longer considered casual clothing, they are incorrectly still defined as casual trousers by all major American and British dictionaries.

Translations

Verb

slacks

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

English

Etymology

Attested since the 1610s, from the earlier form trouzes (attested since the 1580s), extended from trouse (1570s), with plural ending typical of things in pairs, from Middle Irish triubhas (“close-fitting shorts”), of uncertain origin. The unexplained intrusive second -r- is perhaps due to the influence of drawers.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?t?a?z?z/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?t?a?z?z/
• Hyphenation: trou?sers

Noun

trousers pl (plural only)

1. An article of clothing that covers the part of the body between the waist and the ankles or knees, and is divided into a separate part for each leg.

   Synonyms: breeches, britches, (all Britain, dialectal) kecks, (chiefly US) pants, (Australia) strides; see also Thesaurus:trousers

Usage notes

• Pants is about four times more common in the US than trousers, based on use in COCA.
• Trousers is about nine times more common in the UK than pants, based on use in BNC.
• Slacks about one tenth as common as pants in the US and trousers in the UK.

Hyponyms

• jeans
• pantaloons
• shorts
• slacks

Derived terms

• whoops, there go my trousers

Translations

References

Anagrams

• rousters