glove S3 /ɡlʌv/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: glof ]
1 . a piece of clothing that you wear on your hand in order to protect it or keep it warm ⇨ mitten :
a pair of gloves
boxing gloves
rubber/leather etc gloves
2 . the gloves are off used to say that people are ready to begin a fight or argument
⇨ fit (somebody) like a glove at ↑ fit 1 (1), ⇨ hand in glove at ↑ hand 1 (34)
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ wear gloves
Always wear gloves when gardening.
▪ put on/pull on your gloves
Eleanor put on her gloves and stood up.
▪ take off your gloves
Mr Brownlow took off his gloves.
▪ a pair of gloves
Forbes pulled on a pair of black leather gloves.
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + glove
▪ rubber/leather/woollen etc gloves
Dr McIntyre was slowly removing his rubber gloves.
▪ boxing gloves
The trainer laced up Mike's boxing gloves.
▪ a baseball glove
He rubbed oil into his baseball glove to make it softer.
▪ surgical gloves (=special gloves worn by doctors)
Surgical gloves help prevent the spread of germs.
▪ gardening gloves
Gardening gloves protect your hands from being scratched or stung.
▪ an oven glove BrE:
Paul used the oven glove to take the hot tray out of the oven.
▪ protective gloves
Protective gloves and a safety helmet are worn to minimize injury.
▪ disposable gloves (=that you throw away after use)
Nurses must wear disposable gloves when handling patients.
▪ left-hand/right-hand glove
A left-hand glove was found at the scene of the crime.