Definition

Noun: A skirt stiffened with hoops, specifically a woman's skirt made to stand out from the waist by a framework of flexible hoops, popular in the mid-19th century.

Usage

The word "hoopskirt" is a historical and descriptive term. It refers specifically to a type of garment and is typically used in historical, fashion, or costume contexts. It is a countable noun.

Examples

• The historical reenactor wore an authentic hoopskirt under her dress.
• In the 1860s, the hoopskirt was a common fashion item for women.
• The museum's costume collection features a beautiful silk dress with a hoopskirt.

Advanced Usage

• "to wear a hoopskirt": To have a hoopskirt as part of one's attire.
  • Ladies of high society were expected to wear a hoopskirt to formal events.
• "the era of the hoopskirt": A period characterized by this fashion.
  • The novel is set during the era of the hoopskirt and the bustle.

Variants and Related Words

• Hoop (noun): One of the circular bands, originally made of whalebone or steel and later of lightweight materials, used to structure a hoopskirt. This is the key component.
  • The dressmaker inserted several hoops into the petticoat.
• Crinoline (noun): While often used synonymously with "hoopskirt," a crinoline originally referred to a stiff fabric (horsehair and linen) used to add fullness. Later, the term came to mean the structured petticoat or cage itself that created the silhouette, which is essentially a hoopskirt.
• Cage crinoline (noun): Another precise term for the framework of hoops that forms a hoopskirt.

Synonyms

• Crinoline (in its later meaning)
• Cage crinoline

Antonyms

• Sheath skirt
• Pencil skirt
• Straight skirt

Related Phrases/Idioms

• No common idioms directly incorporate "hoopskirt." Its usage is primarily literal and descriptive within its specific historical context.

Noun

1. a skirt stiffened with hoops