panties

A little girl picks out a pair of panties with a flower pattern from her dresser drawer.

Definition

Noun (plural only): - A short, close-fitting undergarment worn by women and girls, covering the lower torso and having leg openings. Panties are typically made of cotton, silk, or synthetic materials and are designed for comfort and modesty.

Usage Examples

• (A garment worn under clothing.)
• (Undergarments for a young girl.)
• (A humorous or informal reference to a woman’s undergarment.)

Advanced Usage

• "panties in a twist" (informal, idiomatic): to be overly upset or agitated about something trivial.

  • Don’t get your panties in a twist over a minor mistake. (Don’t become excessively annoyed.)

• "pair of panties": a common phrasing to refer to one unit of the garment.

  • She packed a fresh pair of panties for the trip. (One individual undergarment.)

Variants and Related Words

• Pantie (n): singular form, rarely used except in compound words like "pantie line" (the visible outline of panties under clothing).

  • The tight dress showed a pantie line. (A visible seam or edge.)

• Pantiliner (n): a thin absorbent pad worn inside panties for light menstrual flow or daily freshness.

  • She uses a pantiliner for extra protection. (A hygiene product.)

Synonyms

• Underpants: a general term for lower-body undergarments, often used for both men and women.
• Knickers: a British English term for women’s or girls’ underpants.
• Briefs: a style of panties that provides full coverage at the front and back.
• Thong: a style of panties with a narrow strip of fabric at the back.

Related Idioms

• "to have ants in your pants": to be restless or unable to sit still (not directly related to panties but shares the "pants" root).
  • The child had ants in his pants during the long car ride. (He was fidgety.)

Phrasal Verbs

• None specific to "panties." The word is rarely used in phrasal verbs; it functions primarily as a noun.