Definition

1. Noun:

   • A woman's close-fitting foundation garment: A girdle is a piece of women's underwear, often made with elastic material, worn around the waist and hips to shape and support the body.
   • A band of material around the waist: A girdle can be any belt, sash, or cord worn around the waist, such as part of a robe or traditional dress.
   • An encircling or ringlike structure: In anatomy, a girdle refers to a bony structure that encircles the body, like the shoulder or hip bones. In a general sense, it can refer to anything that surrounds something else.

2. Verb:

   • To put a girdle on or around: To encircle or surround something with a belt or band.
   • To cut a ring around a tree trunk: In forestry or botany, to girdle a tree means to cut a ring through the bark and cambium layer around its trunk, which interrupts the flow of sap and eventually kills the tree.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • She wore a girdle under her wedding dress for a smoother silhouette.
  • The knight's sword was fastened to his girdle.
  • The pelvic girdle provides attachment for the legs.

• Verb:

  • Vines girdled the old stone column.
  • Improper pruning can accidentally girdle a tree branch.

Advanced Usage

• "To gird one's loins": An idiom meaning to prepare oneself for action or a difficult task. It originates from the practice of tucking long robes into a belt (girdle) to allow free movement.
  • We must gird our loins for the challenging negotiations ahead.

Variants and Related Words

• Girdler (n): A person or tool that makes girdles, or an insect that girdles trees.
• Girdling (n/adj): The act or process of cutting a girdle around a tree.

Synonyms

• Noun (garment): Corset, foundation garment, shapewear.
• Noun (belt): Belt, sash, cincture, waistband.
• Verb (encircle): Encircle, surround, belt, encompass, ring.

Phrasal Verbs / Related Verb Phrases

• Girdle with: To surround or encircle something with something else.
  • The fortress was girdled with a deep moat.

Related Idioms

• Under someone's girdle: An archaic idiom meaning to be under someone's control or influence.
  • He was completely under his advisor's girdle.

Noun

1. a woman's close-fitting foundation garment
2. a band of material around the waist that strengthens a skirt or trousers
3. an encircling or ringlike structure

Verb

1. put a girdle on or around
   • gird your loins
2. cut a girdle around so as to kill by interrupting the circulation of water and nutrients
   • girdle the plant