different between trousers vs windproofs

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

English

Verb

windproofs

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

Noun

windproofs pl (plural only)

1. trousers designed for cold, windy conditions
   • 1954, Peter Digby, Vi Digby, Beyond the pack ice

     It looked like a deadlock until at last Katinka pointed to a pair of windproofs that were hanging on the line over the stove.