KNICKERBOCKERS


Meaning of KNICKERBOCKERS in English

/ ˈnɪkəbɒkəz; NAmE ˈnɪkərbɑːkərz/ ( NAmE also knick·ers ) noun

[ pl. ] short loose trousers / pants that fit tightly just below the knee, worn especially in the past

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WORD ORIGIN

mid 19th cent. (originally in sense 2): named after Diedrich Knickerbocker , pretended author of W. Irving's History of New York (1809). Sense 1 is said to have arisen from the resemblance of knickerbockers to the knee breeches worn by Dutch men in George Cruikshank's illustrations in Irving's book.

Oxford Advanced Learner's English Dictionary.      Оксфордский английский словарь для изучающик язык на продвинутом уровне.