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lab coat

lab coat

24 2.1
A long white coat worn over clothes in a laboratory to protect them from spills and chemicals
  • noun
  • /læb koʊt/
translation icon : bata de laboratorio
  • She always wears a lab coat and gloves when handling chemicals in the lab.
  • a white lab coat

Imagine a white scientist lab coat, like a white lab coat.

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Examples

  • A scientist in a white lab coat is holding up the model.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • They actually wear lab coats here.

  • Is that a lab coat?

  • What happened to your lab coat?

  • Wear a white lab coat.

  • Emma picks herself up, sees the man in the white lab coat, and runs for him.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • At least they're not in lab coats.

  • Both of them wore white lab coats, but Adams had more pens in his pocket.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • A young Oriental woman in a starched white lab coat walked into the room.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • In the performance, actors in white lab coats busily milled around, moving in a pantomime of technical confidence.

    Academic text (2001)

Synonyms

laboratory coat
vslab coat
  • Specialized
3.6

A light protective piece of clothing worn over clothes in a lab

is the shorter, more common form of the same garment

How Protective

biohazard suit
  • Specialized
1 6.5
coverall
16 4.0
lab coat
24 2.1
apron
103 1.0

Surface Forms

lab coat singular
lab coats plural

Morphology

lab + coat

The meaning is directly and compositionally derived from 'lab' (a place for scientific work) + 'coat' (an outer garment): a coat worn in a laboratory to protect clothing. This is a common, cross-linguistically transparent noun compound, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the intended meaning.

Etymology

Lab coat is a light, usually white coat people wear over clothes in a lab to 'protect' them from spills and chemicals. So, the name simply means a 'coat' used to keep people's clothes safe during experiments.