wardrobe

[ wawr-drohb ]

noun

1. a stock of clothes or costumes, as of a person or of a theatrical company.
2. a piece of furniture for holding clothes, now usually a tall, upright case fitted with hooks, shelves, etc.
3. a room or place in which to keep clothes or costumes.
4. the department of a royal or other great household charged with the care of wearing apparel.
5. wardrobe trunk.
6. a department in a motion-picture or television studio in charge of supplying and maintaining costumes:

   Report to wardrobe right after lunch.

verb (used with object)

, ward·robed, ward·rob·ing.

1. to provide with a wardrobe.

wardrobe

/ ˈwɔːdrəʊb /

noun

1. a tall closet or cupboard, with a rail or hooks on which to hang clothes
2. the total collection of articles of clothing belonging to one person
3. the collection of costumes belonging to a theatre or theatrical company

Word History and Origins

Origin of wardrobe¹

1250–1300; Middle English warderobe < Anglo-French. See ward (v.), robe

Word History and Origins

Origin of wardrobe¹

C14: from Old Northern French warderobe, from warder to guard + robe robe

Example Sentences

In person, she felt like a force, her kaleidoscopic wardrobe hardly a match for her natural energy.

From Los Angeles Times

Small and compact, always fit, Haynes balanced his sophisticated drumming with an equally stylish wardrobe.

From Los Angeles Times

“You have a London wardrobe, an Orkney wardrobe, and then a crossover of a few bits that bounce around,” Snell says.

From Los Angeles Times

Scotland had thrown the kitchen sink, the contents of the living room and half a dozen wardrobes at them and they still did not break.

From BBC

She was able to refill her prescriptions at her pharmacy, and someone offered her a new wardrobe and other goods.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• apparel
• attire
• closet
• dresser
• trunk