Overcoat

Overcoat

Noun · /ˈəʊ.və.kəʊt/

Definition

A long warm coat worn over other clothing as an outer garment; a topcoat; (in painting and manufacturing) an additional coat applied over a previous layer — a top coat or finishing coat.

Origin

From over- (above, on top of) + coat (a garment — from Old French cote, from Medieval Latin cotta, a tunic, of Germanic origin). An overcoat being literally a coat worn over — on top of — other clothing. The garment appearing as a specific category in English from the eighteenth century, when the long outer coat became an established element of men's dress. The British overcoat tradition producing specific named styles: the Chesterfield, the Ulster, the Inverness, the Balmacaan, the British warm — each a recognisable cut or style of overcoat associated with particular periods and social contexts.