costumen.
/ˈkɒstjuːm/, /ˈkɒstʃuːm/, U.S. /ˈkɑsˌt(j)um/ 1. † a. Art. The custom, manner, or style of the period which a particular piece of art is intended to represent, considered in terms of accuracy in representation; the clothes, furnishings, and other objects appropriate to the time and place to which the scene or individual represented belongs. Also: the style of a particular piece of art, considered in terms of the time and place which it represents or to which it belongs. Obsolete.
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society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > plastic art > sculpture or carving > [noun] > a sculpture or carving > identifying symbol, dress, etc.
costume1668
attribute1718
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > painting > painting according to subject > [noun] > historical painting > a historical painting > costume
costume1668
1668 J. Evelyn tr. R. Fréart Idea Perfection Painting 56 Suppose one were to paint the History of Adam and Eve in the terrestrial Paradise..: A Painter is here to be wary, that he introduce no other Figures of Men, or any Buildings in the Land-skip, which would be a fault..repugnant to that Costume and Decorum [Fr. ce qui seroit vne lourde faute contre le Costûme].
1715 J. Richardson Ess. Theory of Painting 53 Not only the Story, but..the Habits, Arms, Manners..and the like, must correspond. This is call'd the observing the Costume.
1785 J. Reynolds Disc. Royal Acad. Dec. 10 1784 21 This is hardly reconcileable to strict propriety, and the costume, of which Raffaele was in general a good observer.
b. In extended use, esp. with reference to a work of literature. Now historical and rare.
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society > leisure > the arts > literature > prose > narrative or story > fiction > [noun] > plot > setting
costume1668
1668 J. Evelyn tr. R. Fréart Idea Perfection Painting 55 Explication of Costume [Fr. Explication du costûme]... This Word is..common both to Poets and Historians, who write but the same things, which Painters are us'd to represent.
1761 T. Smollett et al. tr. Voltaire Wks. XXV. 124 Ariosto, whilst he attends to this costume, as the painters call it, does not let a single word escape him that is not pure Tuscan.
1778 H. L. Thrale Diary 27 Mar. in K. C. Balderston Thraliana (1942) II. 712 The Lord & Lady Performers would not suffer an Italian Song to mingle with the Distresses of Athenais—because it would break what is called Costume in the present Cant.
1816 W. Taylor in Monthly Rev. 81 124 Here is surely as gross a violation of the costume of manners as we find in the Achilles of Racine.
1835 J. Sterling Let. 29 May in T. Carlyle Life J. Sterling (1851) ii. ii. 145 The costume of his [sc. Sterne] subjects is drawn from the familiar experience of his own time and country.
1869 Contemp. Rev. Sept. 67 This costume..becomes his dominant token in subsequent mythopoetry.
1998 N. Leask in T. Fulford & P. J. Kitson Romanticism & Colonialism (2005) x. 176 Dr Johnson had famously praised Shakespeare because of his sublime indifference to costume.
2.
a. The style of clothing, hairdressing, and personal adornment typical of a particular place, period, group, etc.; an example of this. Also: such styles of clothing, etc., as a subject of study.In quot. 1815 in figurative context.
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the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > [noun] > distinctive of nation, class, or period
costume1775
1775 in S. Johnson Journey W. Islands (Pope) sig. Av (caption) Dr. Johnson in his Hebridean Costume.
1796 M. Wollstonecraft Lett. Sweden, Norway & Denmark xxii. 235 Marguerite..was much amused by the costume of the [Danish] women.
1809 E. A. Kendall Trav. Northern Parts U.S. I. i. 4 The clergy had no canonical costume.
1815 W. H. Ireland Scribbleomania 20 Whensoever Mr. Southey issues from the press, we find him arrayed in a different costume.
1818 W. Scott Heart of Mid-Lothian x, in Tales of my Landlord 2nd Ser. II. 230 Her..tresses of long fair hair, which, according to the costume of the country, unmarried women were not allowed to cover with any sort of cap.
1877 W. C. Bryant Sella 313 In costumes of that simpler age they came.
1926 V. G. Childe tr. A. Moret & G. Davy From Tribe to Empire iii. iii. 333 Rameses, seated on his throne in a naos, is receiving the worship of his new wife, dressed in Egyptian costume.
1943 J. Laver Fashion & Fashion Plates 1800–1900 8 The question of female costume is much more complex and much more interesting, for if men's dress tends always to stereotype itself, women's is subject to the perpetual flux of fashion.
1963 Shakespeare Surv. 16 103 The man whose work on the history of costume had a profound influence on the staging of Shakespeare.
1979 A. Carter Bloody Chamber 27 I..pulled on my old serge skirt and flannel blouse, costume of a student.
2004 D. D. Volo Antebellum Period xii. 338 The figures of the Englishmen are clothed in the costume of the period.
b. A set of clothes worn by an actor or performer for a particular role; the clothing, hairstyle, make-up, and other accessories used to portray a particular character.
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society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > the theatre or the stage > a theatre > theatrical equipment or accessories > [noun] > costume
shape1604
playsuit1609
costume1829
costuming1849
1829 Morning Post 10 Dec. His costume was beautiful with one exception: he wore tremendous whiskers.
1839 C. Baron-Wilson Mem. Harriot II. iv. 59 As she had brought her costume, she dressed in the ante-room of the private box.
1883 Truth 31 May 760/2 Madame Judic changed her costume thrice.
1929 Pittsburgh Courier 21 Dec. (Feature section) 1/3 They didn't relish the idea of girls appearing on the stage in frayed, dirty costumes.
1947 C. Beaton Diary May in Self Portrait with Friends (1979) xvi. 192 ‘Wardrobe’..has now the impossible task of re-fitting all these costumes.
2001 Daily Tel. 26 Feb. 19/8 He has rewritten the script, supervised the building of the set and the designing of the costumes,..and story-boarded the sequences.
c. A dressing-up or fancy-dress outfit.
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the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > [noun]
clothesc888
hattersOE
shroudc1000
weedOE
shrouda1122
clothc1175
hatteringa1200
atourc1220
back-clout?c1225
habit?c1225
clothingc1275
cleadinga1300
dubbinga1300
shroudinga1300
attirec1300
coverturec1300
suitc1325
apparel1330
buskingc1330
farec1330
harness1340
tire1340
backs1341
geara1350
apparelmentc1374
attiringa1375
vesturec1385
heelinga1387
vestmentc1386
arraya1400
graitha1400
livery1399
tirementa1400
warnementa1400
arrayment1400
parelc1400
werlec1400
raiment?a1425
robinga1450
rayc1450
implements1454
willokc1460
habiliment1470
emparelc1475
atourement1481
indumenta1513
reparel1521
wearing gear1542
revesture1548
claesc1550
case1559
attirement1566
furniture1566
investuring1566
apparelling1567
dud1567
hilback1573
wear1576
dress1586
enfolding1586
caparison1589
plight1590
address1592
ward-ware1598
garnish1600
investments1600
ditement1603
dressing1603
waith1603
thing1605
vestry1606
garb1608
outwall1608
accoutrementa1610
wearing apparel1617
coutrement1621
vestament1632
vestiment1637
equipage1645
cask1646
aguise1647
back-timbera1656
investiture1660
rigging1664
drapery1686
vest1694
plumage1707
bussingc1712
hull1718
paraphernalia1736
togs1779
body clothing1802
slough1808
toggery1812
traps1813
garniture1827
body-clothes1828
garmenture1832
costume1838
fig1839
outfit1840
vestiture1841
outer womana1845
outward man1846
vestiary1846
rag1855
drag1870
clo'1874
parapherna1876
clobber1879
threads1926
mocker1939
schmatte1959
vine1959
kit1989
1838 Calcutta Monthly Jrnl. Feb. 113/2 Mr. Henry Palmer in an excellent costume as that arch scounderel Sir Giles Overreach.
1871 M. H. Smith Twenty Years among Bulls & Bears Wall St. xliii. 448 Extravagant costumes, imported at fabulous prices, represent monkies, satan, apes, and other forms.
1922 Forest Leaves 19 Oct. 11/2 Be sure you wear your Halloween costume or you will be fined.
1954 W. M. Miller in Fantastic Jan. 34/1 They showed me a dozen pictures of..moppets in time-warp suits, moppets wearing Captain Chronos costumes, [etc.].
1970 Daily Progress (Charlottesville, Va.) 21 Mar. c2/5 If the age group is 4 to 10,..playsacks..are imaginative animal costumes that slip on easily.
2012 Time Out N.Y. 25 Oct. 32/2 Costumes will be judged by a panel of experts and microcelebrities (last year, Hipster Ariel and Nyan Cat were popular getups).
3. A set of outer garments; (chiefly) a woman's dress or (in later use also) matching jacket and skirt. Now historical or somewhat dated.
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the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > set or suit of clothes > [noun] > other
shiftc1570
under-suita1586
doublet and hose1603
siropa1671
frock-clothes1769
costume1797
poncho dress1811
tongs1845
Eton suit1859
sailor's suit1869
Prince Albert1873
Norfolk suit1880
sailor suit1880
ready-made1882
Etons1888
buster suit1903
Mallaby-Deeley1920
tiddly suit1943
utility1945
shell suit1973
Mao suit1993
gansey2009
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > clothing for body or trunk (and limbs) > [noun] > dress, robe, or gown > types of > as chief piece of woman's costume
robinga1450
toilet1752
costume1797
1797 Oracle & Public Advertiser 4 Oct. Having heard Mass in the Chapel of the Hotel de Ville, habited in a black costume, and in red and white scarfs.
1839 B. Disraeli Let. 10 Feb. in Corr. with Sister (1886) 117 She..departed in a white silk costume with border trimmings of birds of paradise feathers.
1890 Daily News 8 Jan. 7/6 (advt.) Great Costume Sale. Fine Melton Costumes, with Medallions, really good quality.
1915 L. Bell Story of Christmas Ship xii. 110 The husband..had purchased a complete costume for her to wear when he took her back home from the hospital.
1943 J. Laver Fashion & Fashion Plates 1800–1900 25 A scarf, or drapery of the same material as the dress,..is a charming addition to this elegant costume.
1998 H. Spurling Unknown Matisse 77 Girls like Camille, with their tiny waists, their neat figures in svelte, tailored costumes, their turbans and parasols, exemplified the gaiety and self-assurance of Paris in the last decade of the century.
4.
a. A person's (habitual) clothing; dress, attire.
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1804 tr. A. La Fontaine Love & Esteem in Love & Gratitude I. 226 A female relation of Drommer's..altered by degrees the whole of her costume [Ger. ihren ganzen Anzug].
1872 J. Morley Voltaire iv. 186 His costume was eccentric and affected.
1927 H. Norris Costume & Fashion II. ii. 107 King John was considered by his contemporaries to be the most extravagant prince in the world, both as regards his costume and personal expenses.
2014 R. M. Karras in S. H. Rigby Historians on Chaucer xviii. 323 Chaucer implies that Alisoun is extravagant in her costume.
b. The style of clothing appropriate to a particular occasion, season, activity, etc.; frequently with modifying word; also in extended use. Also: an example of this; an outfit designed or worn for a particular occasion, activity, etc.
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the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > [noun] > for specific purpose
habilimentsa1492
costume1818
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > [noun] > other
disguise1340
disguisingc1386
shiftc1570
French cut1606
knaverya1616
small clothes1625
small storesa1643
nugging-dress1699
kilting1721
fancy dress1770
under-habit1772
man-millinery1790
sheen1802
costume1818
ingubu1833
bedizenment1837
tat1839
extravaganza1860
rational dress1873
rubber1876
pearly1890
new look1920
collection1921
Daks1933
smart casual1943
separates1945
trapeze1958
Carnaby Street1965
haute boutique1966
kinderwhore1994
1818 La Belle Assemblée May 229/2 For outdoor costume.
1840 B. Disraeli Let. 18 Feb. in Corr. with Sister (1886) 152 It was generally agreed that I am never to wear any other but a Court costume.
1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. I. xxi. 268 They [sc. birds] are already in full summer costume.
1863 M. E. Braddon Eleanor's Victory II. xix. 279 He was..foppish-looking even in his travelling costume.
1917 Sunset Sept. 45/3 Her driving costume consists of flannel shirt, khaki trousers, puttees, driving coat and gauntlets.
1962 W. Stegner Wolf Willow ii. vii. 82 I never knew till I moved to Montana..that turtle-necked sweaters and shoepacs were not standard winter costume everywhere.
2006 J. T. Koch Celtic Culture 1272/2 ‘Celtic dress’ became the basis for the costume worn for Irish formal dances.
c. Chiefly British. A swimming costume; (now usually) a woman's or girl's one-piece swimsuit.
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the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > [noun] > for specific purpose > swimming or bathing
bathing-dress1774
bathing-costume?a1832
costume1855
suit1864
bathing-suit1873
cossie1926
swimmer1929
togs1930
Speedo1933
swimsuit1934
bathers1945
bikini1948
bikini1957
monokini1964
tankini1985
burkini2002
1855 C. R. Weld Vac. Tour U.S. & Canada ii. 48 The ladies emerge from the water, in their gaudy costumes.
1884 Swimming Notes 8 Mar. 4 Ladies so anxious to cultivate speed that they have determined to wear the thinnest possible costumes.
1933 S. G. Hedges Swimming & Watermanship xxii. 161 A bag for carrying towel and costume is a great convenience.
1986 Swimming Times Sept. 16/1 Unfortunately all the boys and some of the girls found the costumes too small, indeed, one girl could not even get hers on!
2015 Birmingham Post (Nexis) 23 July 19 The likelihood is you will venture near a beach or pool, so a costume or bikini will be required.
Phrases
in costume: wearing a costume.
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1839 N. P. Willis in Corsair 9 Nov. 544/1 Carriages of the neighbouring gentry, with ‘bodkins’ and over-packed dickeys, all in costume.
1860 A. J. Munby Diary 29 Sept. in D. Hudson Munby (1972) 76 A photograph of a pitwoman in costume.
1925 F. S. Fitzgerald Great Gatsby iii. 57 A pair of stage twins, who turned out to be the girls in yellow, did a baby act in costume.
1951 Independent Record (Helena, Montana) 25 May 10/2 The final act..consisted of a series of wire-walking, weight-lifting and sideshow attractions presented by boys in costume.
1984 A. Thomas Intertidal Life (1986) i. 71 When Alice was little, everybody came to school in costume and, after assembly..each homeroom had a party.
2014 C. Tóibín Nora Webster vii. 109 They were in costume and they knew their lines.
Compounds
C1. General attributive and objective.
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1800 J. Ogden Sans Culotte & Jacobine iv. 96 The guests were seated, all of note, Each in his new-vamp'd Costume coat.
1827 tr. J.-T. Merle in London & Paris Observer 8 Apr. 218/1 What losses may be sustained through inexperience.., from the laboratory of the lampist to the work-room of the costume maker.
1870 Building News & Engin. Jrnl. 9 Sept. 183/1 In either of the three systems of costume-making we have named there is to be found abundance of precedent and examples to go by.
1872 Queen 15 June 431/3 Costume cloth in all the new colours, including pink,..leather,..and all leading colours.
1915 St. Nicholas June 676/2 The costume-maker who was coming to pass upon the work might arrive any minute.
1949 Billboard 13 Aug. 12/2 The NBC costume section is headed by Rose Bogdanoff.
1974 W. Foley Child in Forest i. iii. 33 Another of my most memorable outfits was a frock that Mam once made me by sewing up a leg-of-mutton style lady's costume coat.
1980 Jrnl. Manx Mus. No. 89. 2/1 The house now exhibits a series of Victorian period rooms, as well as museum displays (including a costume room).
1989 R. Kenan Visitation of Spirits (1996) 226 Horace stepped over to a costume rack, and the harlequin pointed toward an oversized navy-blue coat.
2016 Sunday Age (Melbourne) (Nexis) 28 Feb. 6 The feathered costume-wearer got a selfie with one of the Real Housewives of Melbourne.
C2. attributive. Designating a play, film, or other entertainment set in a particular historical period and characterized by the use of costumes typical of that era; (also) designating a role in such an entertainment.See also costume drama n. at Compounds 3 and costume piece n. at Compounds 3, and cf. costumed adj. 3.
costume comedy n.
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1885 County Gentleman 24 Jan. 103/3 How much better it would have been had she produced an old costume comedy to begin with.
1932 Ann. Reg. 1931 ii. 48 ‘Congress Dances’ proved a delightful costume comedy of 1815.
2006 Financial Times 26 May 13/1 Sofia Coppola's eagerly awaited Marie Antoinette, a subtly seditious and wittily performed costume comedy, got the bird from a packed press-show audience.
costume film n.
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1908 Woodland (Calif.) Daily Democrat 20 Oct. 1/6 The Poisoned Bouquet, a fine costume film, adapted from Shakespeare's famous tragedy, ‘Lucretia Borgia’.
1960 D. Fearon Murder-on-Thames xviii. 170 If costume films start coming back into fashion.
2011 N.Y. Times 20 Nov. ar 10/3 For Mr. Bonello, costume films are typically lifeless pageants.
costume intrigue n. rare
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1961 R. Williams Long Revol. ii. vi. 264 The Romantic movement..produced..the useless form of the costume-intrigue.
costume melodrama n.
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1882 Vermont Watchman & State Jrnl. 15 Feb. 3/2 The highly interesting costume melodrama in four acts entitled ‘Isoline of Bavaria’.
1905 Daily Chron. 5 June 6/5 A costume-melodrama of a quite worthless type.
2005 E. Y. Yeh & D. W. Davis Taiwan Film Directors i. 34 He would also direct costume melodramas set in the early twentieth-century Republican period.
costume part n.
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1845 Satirist 16 Feb. 54/1 Mrs. Brougham's Aldabolea was an imposing display, considering it as a costume part.
1906 G. B. Shaw Let. 28 Dec. (1956) 73 You must blight Vedrenne by telling him that Charteris is a costume part.
2002 Q. Jardine Poisoned Cherries xxviii. 121 I'd seen him on screen before, and on television, in costume parts, contemporary parts, comedy and tragedy.
costume picture n.
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1913 Pop. Electr. & World's Advance Nov. 775/2 J. Warren Kerrigan..is shortly to appear in a series of costume pictures of the period of ‘The Three Guardsmen’.
1921 B. Tarkington Let. 6 Feb. in Plays, Playwrights & Playgoers (1959) 46 I see that one or two ‘costume’ pictures have at last been done pretty well.
2004 Ottawa Citizen (Nexis) 31 Aug. b7 There is also an exotic quality in the movie that separates it from the usual costume picture.
costume play n.
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1875 All Year Round 17 July 72/2 Costume plays are not much in vogue now, and in dramas dealing with life and society at the present date, the actors are understood to provide their own attire.
1929 D. L. Moore Pandora's Let. Box xi. 209 To a lover of accuracy the average ‘costume’ play..exasperates by its slovenliness.
2003 M. Gottfried A. Miller ix. 198 He determined to avoid..the stigma of the costume play, a rarely successful genre.
C3. † costume composer n. Obsolete a person who puts together costumes or outfits; esp. a person who designs or advises on women's fashion.
costume ball n. [perhaps after French bal costumé bal costumé n.] a ball to which people come in elaborate costumes or fancy dress; cf. bal costumé n.
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1823 Ladies' Monthly Museum May 253 I cannot omit giving you some account of two costume balls we have had at court [in Brussels].
1877 Newcastle Courant 26 Jan. 6/8 Costume balls are in great favour in Paris this season... The ladies wear ordinary ball dresses, and the head only is travestied.
1940 Pop. Sci. Mar. 112/1 A curious evening gown, made entirely of rubber, was one of the outstanding costumes worn at a costume ball..in Akron, Ohio.
2008 J. Perl Antoine's Alphabet 37 There was nothing particularly out of the ordinary about these outfits, which just about anybody might have worn to a costume ball.
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1878 Freeman's Jrnl. 11 Oct. 2/1 It may be thought that the severity of the Roman garb left little to the costume composers.
1884 Pall Mall Gaz. 8 Apr. 4/2 The ‘costume-composers’ of the present day..are still supreme law-givers to the majority of their sex.
1888 Daily Picayune (New Orleans) 15 Jan. 16/2 If anything should happen to Jack I would become a costume-composer. The way some of our women dress is enough to set one's teeth on edge.
costume design n. (a) a design for an outfit or costume; (b) the art or practice of designing costumes, esp. for theatrical or film productions.
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1867 L. W. Schmidt's Gen. Catal. Stock Misc. Bks. Sci. Catal. 75 Costume-Designs.
1876 Builder 14 Oct. 998/1 Costume design may be effective in three principal ways,—by its lines, by its combination and contrast of colour, or by mere beauty of material.
1895 Weekly Standard (London) 28 June 7/5 Here is..a very elegant and dressy costume design specially intended for matrons.
1955 A. C. Scott Kabuki Theatre Japan vii. 137 The stage dress of those times was based on that of the common civilians..and this called for a good deal of improvization [sic]..in costume design.
1969 Times 10 Oct. 8/4 John Stoddart's costume design for one of the aesthetic ladies.
2008 V. LoBrutto Martin Scorsese xxv. 335 The majority of films nominated for best costume design..are period works.
costume designer n. a person who designs costumes or outfits, now esp. for theatrical or film productions; a specialist in costume design.
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1870 Fort Wayne (Indiana) Daily Democrat 10 Aug. 1/5 Three doors west of Broadway..is the flourishing establishment of a man dress-maker and costume designer, Monsieur Moschowitz.
1898 Atchison (Kansas) Daily Globe 12 Nov. 7/6 Costume designers seem still bent upon bringing in the ‘two storied’ skirts.
1949 Billboard 13 Aug. 12/2 The NBC costume section is headed by Rose Bogdanoff, a top Broadway costume designer.
2007 Opera Now Mar. 88/1 Boos and whistles greeted..the producer, scenographer and costume designer for this new version of The Magic Flute.
costume drama n. a television, film, or theatrical production, often made on a lavish scale, which is set in a particular historical period and characterized by the use of elaborate costumes typical of that era; such productions as a genre.
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society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > drama > [noun] > other types or branches
satyric1693
legitimate1826
boulevard theatre1838
satyr drama1839
tragicomic1842
costume drama1847
Sardoodledom1895
slice of life1895
cape and sword (also cape and cloak)1898
total theatre1935
epic theatre1938
Theatre of Cruelty1954
music theatre1957
psychodramatics1957
reader's theatre1957
metatheatre1960
Theatre of the Absurd1961
nautanki1962
Theatre of Fact1966
1847 U.S. Mag. & Democratic Rev. June 546 People are not partial to classical and intellectual performances, and decidedly prefer infantile salutations and costume dramas.
1911 Everybody's Mag. Jan. 123/1 Now and then one will hear a self-constituted authority on public dramatic taste..declare that the time is ripe for a costume drama.
1980 Register (Orange County, Calif.) 28 May c10/1 That..part made Jacobi a big star in Britain where costume drama is prime time major network fare.
2011 Z. Strachan Ever fallen in Love 4 He..browsed the DVDs..finally grabbing..a costume drama and the second series of a comedy show he'd never watched.
costume fitting n. the action or an act of fitting a costume to the wearer's figure, esp. for a theatrical or film role; an appointment at which an actor is fitted with a costume.
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1916 Pearson's Mag. Jan. 54/1 I've a committee meeting at eleven and a costume fitting at twelve.
1918 Essex County Chron. 15 Feb. 1/9 (advt.) Chelmsford's new shop... Millinery, Drapery, Dressmaking, Costume Fitting.
1927 5th Rep. Industr. Welfare Comm. Calif. 132 Extras may also have to go to the studios for costume fittings.
1943 C. Beaton Diary in Self Portrait with Friends (1979) xiii. 112 Her distress reflected itself at the costume fittings.
2007 H. Mirren In Frame 201 I happily..did a costume fitting, and met with a policewoman to learn a little about..the world of the police.
costume hire n. the temporary rental of costumes, esp. for theatrical or film use; frequently attributive.
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1910 Alviene United Stage-training Schools Inc. 48 The rent for costume hire is paid by the student.
1972 Spectator 19 Feb. 289/3 There are ugly developments in the theatrical old clothes and costume hire business.
2010 B. Goldsmith et al. Local Hollywood 112 Places like the Gold Coast are often too small to sustain specialist prop houses or costume hire facilities.
costume jewellery n. originally U.S. jewellery made from inexpensive materials or artificial gemstones, and worn as a fashion accessory.
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the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > types of ornamentation > jewellery > [noun] > imitation
doublet1449
St. Martin's beads1616
triplet1877
snide1885
junk1904
costume jewellery1907
slum1914
junk jewellery1920
1907 Atlanta Constit. 1 Dec. 5/4 In the costume jewelry several of the dry goods stores have a beautiful display.
1950 A. Christie Murder is Announced vii. 68 It's ‘costume jewellery’ that young Miss Simmons wears—gold ivy leaves and dogs and such like.
2015 Times of India (Nexis) 14 Apr. The whole idea of costume jewellery is knowing how to wear it right.
costume party n. chiefly North American a party to which people come in costumes or fancy dress.
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society > leisure > social event > social gathering > party > [noun] > other parties
play-party1796
tail1837
surprise-party1840
street party1845
costume party1850
pound party1869
all-nighter1870
neighbourhood party1870
simcha1874
ceilidh1875
studio party1875
pounding1883
house party1885
private function1888
shower1893
kitchen shower1896
kitchen evening1902
bottle party1903
pyjama party1910
block party1919
house party1923
after-party1943
slumber party1949
office party1950
freeload1952
hukilau1954
BYOB1959
pot party1959
bush party1962
BYO1965
wrap party1978
bop1982
warehouse party1988
rave1989
1850 Godey's Lady's Bk. May 333/1 He had met Miss Amelia at a costume party, and requested an introduction.
1910 Weekly Irish Times 3 Dec. 42/4 The scene depicts a Christmas costume party, at which figures in Georgian costume..are receiving Miss Parliamentina.
1979 Weekend Mag. (Toronto) 17 Mar. 18/2 The Gwyns..are famous for their costume parties, where anonymous news sources come dressed as deputy ministers.
2011 M. Daly 87 Ways to throw Killer Party 20 That's the allure of the costume party—the chance to..spend one night in another person's shoes.
costume piece n. a play or (occasionally) film, etc., set in a particular historical period and characterized by the use of costumes typical of that era. N.E.D. (1893) notes: ‘The dresses for a “costume-piece” are provided by the manager, for a “modern piece” by the actors themselves.’
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society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > drama > a play > [noun] > other types of play
king play1469
king game1504
historya1509
chronicle history1600
monology1608
horseplaya1627
piscatory1631
stock play1708
petite pièce1712
mimic1724
ballad opera1730
ballad farce1735
benefit-play1740
potboiler1783
monodrama1793
extravaganza1797
theo-drama1801
monodrame1803
proverb1803
stock piece1804
bespeak1807
ticket-night1812
dramaticle1813
monopolylogue1819
pièce d'occasion1830
interlude1831
mimea1834
costume piece1834
mummers' play1849
history play1850
gag-piece1860
music drama1874
well-made1881
playlet1884
two-decker1884
slum1885
kinderspiel1886
thrill1886
knockabout1887
two-hander1888
front-piece1889
thriller1889
shadow-play1890
mime play1894
problem play1894
one-acter1895
sex play1899
chronicle drama1902
thesis-play1902
star vehicle1904
folk-play1905
radio play1908
tab1915
spy play1919
one-act1920
pièce à thèse1923
dance-drama1924
a mess of plottage1926
turkey1927
weepie1928
musical1930
cliffhanger1931
mime drama1931
triangle drama1931
weeper1934
spine-chiller1940
starrer1941
scorcher1942
teleplay1947
straw-hatter1949
pièce noire1951
pièce rose1951
tab show1951
conversation piece1952
psychodrama1956
whydunit1968
mystery play1975
State of the Nation1980
1834 Athenæum 4 Oct. 731/3 They are what are termed costume pieces, and have been put upon the stage with taste and correctness.
1913 H. A. Jones Found. National Drama iii. 50 For the most part, the costume pieces that are successful on our stage are very sorry pieces of fustian and artifice.
2006 J. Rich Warm up Snake vi. 65 Visions of directing classic cinema along the lines of Casablanca, which Wallis had produced along with successful English costume pieces.
Derivatives
ˈcostumey adj. (also costumy) suggestive of a costume or fancy dress; elaborate or showy.
ΚΠ
1859 Once a Week 31 Dec. 7/2 He looked attentively for a moment, and..hastily replied, ‘Too costumey, too costumey.’ The fact was, he delighted more in the rich brown of old rags than..the bright colors of new lace.
1937 Vogue 15 Mar. 145/1 Alix's beach clothes are very picturesque and colourful..but very costumy.
1973 Arizona Republic 7 May 37/2 It's the fancy hat salons and the ornate, costumey hats..that belong to the past.
2006 Fast Company Jan. 46/2 You need clothes that are wearable and relevant to modern lives, not costumey designs.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2016; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
costumev.
/ˈkɒstjuːm/, /ˈkɒstʃuːm/, U.S. /ˈkɑsˌt(j)um/ transitive. To provide with a costume, esp. for a role in a play, film, etc.; to dress (a person) in a particular garment or outfit. Also: to design or provide the costumes for (a play, film, etc.). Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > providing with clothing > provide with clothing [verb (transitive)] > in specific way > with specific garments > other
wimple?c1225
pricka1275
clothe1382
addressa1393
haspc1400
to-cloutc1430
shirtc1450
gownc1485
tuft1535
passement1539
kerchief1600
muff1607
inshirt1611
insmock1611
mode1656
costume1802
slop1803
shawl1812
cravat1818
sur-invest1827
frock1828
pinafore1843
smock1847
panoply1851
underclothe1857
upholster1873
fancy dress1878
sleeve1887
to suit up1912
crinoline1915
society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > the theatre or the stage > the staging of a theatrical production > stage [verb (transitive)] > arrange costumes for
dress1741
costume1802
1802 J. P. Curran Let. 5 Oct. in W. H. Curran Life J. P. Curran (1819) I. v. 205 The trouble of getting one's self costumed for the show.
1823 New Monthly Mag. 8 243 Spanish painters took..great liberties with costuming their Saints.
1884 A. A. Watts Life Alaric Watts I. 213 The eccentricities..in which they costumed their minds.
1916 Moving Picture World 12 Feb. 968/2 She has original and striking ideas of costuming her roles.
1963 Homewood-Flossmoor (Illinois) Star 25 Dec. 4/3 The play was costumed by the girls themselves.
2011 Daily Tel. 7 Feb. 27/4 The second [act] rams the moral home by costuming Chartkov first as a Stalinist apparatchik then as Andy Warhol.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2016; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1668
v.1802