muumuu

or mu·mu, mu'u·mu'u

[ moo-moo ]

noun

1. a long, loose-hanging dress, usually brightly colored or patterned, worn especially by Hawaiian women.
2. a similar dress worn as a housedress.

Word History and Origins

Origin of muumuu¹

First recorded in 1920–25; from Hawaiian muʾumuʾu name of the dress, literally, “cut-off”; so called because it originally lacked a yoke

Example Sentences

The family ran four stores that catered to tourists, selling aloha shirts and muumuus along with leis that Vierra’s husband, Mike Vierra, would make from plumeria blossoms he picked in their yard.

From Seattle Times

Ms. Lake, who has publicly discussed her struggles with hair loss, had a gray pixie cut and was wearing an orange tie-dye muumuu.

From New York Times

“Like, the urine smell, the woman in the muumuu, the stray cats.”

From Washington Post

“I am challenging the call-out culture,” Professor Ross said from her home in Atlanta, where she was lecturing on Zoom to students on a recent evening, in a blue muumuu from Ghana.

From New York Times

These are big, baggy dresses we would once have called muumuus or kaftans or even beach cover-ups.

From The Guardian

Related Words

• apparel
• attire
• costume
• ensemble
• frock
• garb
• gown
• robe
• skirt
• smock
• suit
• uniform
• wardrobe