CHAT Vests (was: Spelling pronunciations)

On Monday, November 8, 2004, at 07:47 , Mark J. Reed wrote:

> On Mon, Nov 08, 2004 at 07:19:13PM +0000, Ray Brown wrote:
[snip]

>> Sort of logical, I guess - except that over here there are some guys
>> who, when the weathers warmer, don't wear the vest/undershirt under
>> anything  :)
>
> Then they're just T-shirts.
No, no, no! I'm not talking about T-shirts. I know the difference between
a T-shirt & a vest (whether American or British!). I mean those things
John called "wife-beaters" (and I'm not asking why!). As John pointed out,
  the one thing that Brits & Merkans agree on is that vests do not have
sleeves  :)

=======================

> On Monday, November 8, 2004, at 09:11 , Tristan Mc Leay wrote:
[snip]

> I think I finally understand! (I've always heard people say that one
> groups 'vest' is another's 'waistcoat', but had no idea what either
> group meant by either term.)
Noe you know   :)

> Australians call these devices _singlets_
> unless I'm mistaken ('singlet' is appropriate for most sleeveless tops).
I don't think you're mistaken. The term 'singlet' is sometimes also used
in the UK; but _vest_ is the more common term.

> And I think we use the American meaning for _vest_.
Darn colonials - what's wrong with 'waistcoat'?  (Only kidding   :)
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On Tuesday, November 9, 2004, at 05:43 , Roger Mills wrote:
[snip]

> Re Vest.  In the US, mainly the 3d piece of a 3-piece suit; in pinstripes,
> much favored by the banking community.
Yep - that's a waistcoat!

> It used to be (but probably isn't
> anymore) somewhat gauche to appear in your vest without the suit coat.
In fact it's de_rigueur to appear in a waistcoat/vest without the jacket
if you are a snooker player. And in a ew weeks time I suspect several
people will be wearing waistcoats patterned with holly, stars, bells etc.
without any attempt at any matching suit  :)

[snip]
>
> When I was a child, an _undershirt_ was always white, flimsy cotton, with
> little shoulder straps and a scooped neck.
Exactly the same here - except we called 'em vests.

>  It was very gauche, indeed
> déclassé, to appear in one in public (immigrants did.....).
Yep - those over here who like to appear so dressed seem to revel in their
gauchness, and usually have large beer-bellies and are certainly not
immigrants. The favored style seems to be 'sting vest', that is a
"wife-beater" type 'vest' made of net-like fabric. I suppose it enables
them to vaunt their bellies more   :)

> That seems to be your singlet, UK vest, current US slang wife-beater.
They are singlets if worn as the top garment by an athlete   :)

[snip]
> Nowadays, "tank-top" is the same thing, only in colors and somewhat more
> substantial fabric, and sufficiently stylish that one can wear them in
> public. Like stretch pants and short shorts, however, some people
> shouldn't..........
Yep - but these IME are worn by females only  :)

> Sometime after WW 2, the T-shirt became popular as an undergarment;
> perhaps
> because they were issued to our troops in the war?? They usurped the name
> "undershirt". For a long time, they too were white only, and somewhat more
> acceptable in public, unless you had your cigarette pack rolled-up in the
> sleeve, which marked you as a hood or Juvenile Delinquent.... Nowadays of
> course they come in all colors and often Make a Statement.
Same this side of the Atlantic - except they're always IME called T-shirts.
  All my T-shirts make a statement and I never wear them as undershirts,
but many of students did.

> A T-shirt without sleeves (sometimes form-fitting) is a "muscle shirt".
Of course without sleeves it can't be a T-shirt (presumably it becames a
sanserif I-shirt   :)

> Ain't fashion fun!?
Umm...

Ray
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http://home.freeuk.com/ray.brown
ray.brown@freeuk.com
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Anything is possible in the fabulous Celtic twilight,
which is not so much a twilight of the gods
as of the reason."      [JRRT, "English and Welsh" ]