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Glite Dictionary
monkey jacket

monkey jacket

9.6
A short formal jacket worn by navy officers at dinner
  • noun
  • Archaic
translation icon : chaqueta de gala
  • The young cadet was excited to receive his first monkey jacket for the mess night.

Examples

  • He adjusted his monkey jacket before entering the dining hall, feeling a sense of pride.

  • We are a motley crew in our stained monkey jackets keeping company with a captain who looks more like a countess.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • At the formal dinner, the officers proudly wore their monkey jackets as a sign of tradition.

Synonyms

jacket
vsmonkey jacket
∞ 1.0

A short coat that reaches the waist or hips and fastens at the front

is the specific formal officer waist garment not any short outer coat
shell jacket
vsmonkey jacket
7.9

A short waist-length jacket worn by military officers at formal dinners

is the same officer dinner garment but under a different traditional name
mess jacket
vsmonkey jacket
  • Jargon
8.4

Short jacket worn by military officers at formal dinners

is used for the same formal officer dinner garment in the mess tradition

How Formal

tailcoat
1 6.8
monkey jacket
  • Archaic
9.6
blazer
52 2.5
shirt
∞ 1.0
T-shirt
400 1.0

Surface Forms

monkey jacket singular
monkey jackets plural

Morphology

monkey + jacket

The modifier 'monkey' does not transparently signal the specific shape or formal function of the garment; its literal sense (a primate) or general senses do not predict 'a waist-length, tapered formal jacket.' This is a lexicalized, culture-specific clothing term with a specialized historical meaning, so a B1 learner who knows 'monkey' and 'jacket' would not be able to derive the intended meaning without prior exposure.

Etymology

The noun monkey jacket may come from sailors. The short jacket let men climb the ship's ropes like a monkey, so it did not get in the way. That's why the name stuck and now means a 'waist-length' navy jacket.