BODYSUIT

noun (Lifestyle and Leisure) A close-fitting stretch all-in-one garment for women, used mainly for exercising and sports. Etymology: Formed by compounding: a suit (something like a swimsuit in fabric structure) to cover the whole body. History and Usage: The bodysuit first appeared as a fashion garment in the late sixties (when it was usually an all-in-one body garment fastened with snap fasteners at the crotch); in the late seventies and eighties it enjoyed a new lease of life as a skin-tight all-in-one sports garment, benefiting from the craze for exercise regimes and the fashion for sportswear outside the gymnasium and sports stadium. Before he changes into his tight red Spandex bodysuit with the plunging neckline, there is the quick hint of a tattoo lurking beneath the rolled-up sleeve on his right arm. Washington Post 13 May 1982, section C, p. 17 Four schoolgirls stunned spectators and officials by wearing 'Flo Jo' bodysuits at Victoria's most prestigious schools' athletics meeting at the weekend. Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 31 Oct. 1989, p. 3 The eye-boggling bodysuit...is a style trend that has been taken up by designers. New York Times 5 Aug. 1990, section 6, p. 38