Meanings
gilet1
plural gilets
- historicalA bodice worn by a woman similar to a man's waistcoat; also, a decorative panel at the front of such a bodice, or worn separately.
- broadlyA sleeveless jacket resembling a waistcoat but generally closed at the neck; specifically, one which is padded to provide warmth.
Synonyms: bodywarmer
Gilet2
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA sleeveless jacket resembling a waistcoat but generally closed at the neck; specifically, one which is padded to provide warmth.
Origin
- Proto-Turkic*yẹl“wind”
- Turkishyelek“jelick; vest, waistcoat”
- Italiangileccu
- Frenchgilet“vest, waistcoat”
- Englishgilet
Borrowed from French gilet (“vest, waistcoat”), from regional Italian gileccu (Calabria), gilecco (Genoa), gelecco (Naples), ggileccu (Sicily), etc. (standard Italian gilè is borrowed from French), from Turkish yelek (“jelick; vest, waistcoat”) (ultimately from Proto-Turkic *yẹl (“wind”, noun)) with the final syllable modified to match other types of clothing such as corselet and mantelet. The Oxford English Dictionary does not regard the French word as having derived from Arabic جَلِيقَة (jalīqa), which it views as a recent borrowing from Italian into Algerian Arabic. Doublet of jelick.
More words from French, Italian, Turkish
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Finnish liivi
- liivisleeveless jacket resembling a waistcoat but generally closed at the neck; specifically, one which is padded to provide warmth
German Gilet
- Giletsleeveless jacket resembling a waistcoat but generally closed at the neck; specifically, one which is padded to provide warmth
Japanese ジレー
- ジレー (jirē)sleeveless jacket resembling a waistcoat but generally closed at the neck; specifically, one which is padded to provide warmth
Russian жиле́т
- жиле́т (žilét)sleeveless jacket resembling a waistcoat but generally closed at the neck; specifically, one which is padded to provide warmth
Swedish gilet
- giletsleeveless jacket resembling a waistcoat but generally closed at the neck; specifically, one which is padded to provide warmth
Turkish jile
- jilesleeveless jacket resembling a waistcoat but generally closed at the neck; specifically, one which is padded to provide warmth
Vietnamese gi-lê
- gi-lêsleeveless jacket resembling a waistcoat but generally closed at the neck; specifically, one which is padded to provide warmth
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
gilet. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gilet
“gilet.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gilet. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “gilet,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gilet.
Source: gilet on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.