mess jacket
Noun: A mess jacket is a formal, waist-length jacket that tapers to a single point at the back. It is traditionally worn by military officers and members of certain clubs for formal dinners and evening events in a mess, which is a dining hall for members of a military unit or other organized group.
The term mess jacket is used to refer specifically to this item of formal evening wear. It is a standard part of specific dress codes. - It is worn as part of a formal or semi-formal uniform. - It is typically paired with matching trousers, a formal shirt, and a bow tie. - Its use is almost exclusively associated with organized groups like the military, yacht clubs, or gentlemen's clubs for dining events.
- Noun:
- For the regimental dinner, all officers are required to wear their mess jackets.
- The invitation specified "mess dress," so he took his mess jacket to the tailor for adjustments.
- The mess jacket, with its distinctive cut, is a symbol of tradition and camaraderie.
- "In mess jacket": Describing someone wearing this specific garment.
- The commodore, resplendent in mess jacket, welcomed the guests to the annual ball.
- Mess dress (n): The full formal uniform ensemble that includes the mess jacket, trousers, shirt, bow tie, and often a cummerbund or waistcoat.
- The ceremony required full mess dress.
- Dinner jacket (n): A more general term for a man's formal evening jacket, such as a tuxedo jacket. A mess jacket is a specific type of dinner jacket with a unique cut and military/club associations.
- Military dinner jacket: Emphasizes its use within armed forces.
- Shell jacket: A historical term for a similar short jacket, though not always pointed at the back.
The mess jacket is defined by its specific context (military/club mess), its length (waist-high), and its unique pointed back. It is not a general term for any short or formal jacket.
- waist-length jacket tapering to a point at the back; worn by officers in the mess for formal dinners