Meanings
plural underarms
- ball gamesOld-fashioned and now outlawed style of bowling in which the arm is not swung over the shoulder.
- not comparableFor use under the arm.
A 1997 study found that about 104 million American women were using underarm deodorant products.
2001, Victoria Sherrow, For appearance' sake
present singular third person underarms · participle present underarming · participle past underarmed · past underarmed
- transitiveTo supply with insufficient weaponry.
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectivewith hand brought forward and up from below shoulder level
adverbwith the hand swung below shoulder level
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
From under- + arm. The armpit sense is not old, historically speaking (1920s), and it is believed to have arisen as a euphemism in advertising.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Basque besape
- besapearmpit
Bulgarian подмишница
- подмишница (podmišnica)armpit
Esperanto akselo, subbrako
- akseloarmpit
- subbrakoarmpit
Finnish kainalo
- kainaloarmpit
Greek μασχάλη
- μασχάλη (mascháli)armpit
Hawaiian ʻēʻē, pōʻaeʻae
- ʻēʻēarmpit
- pōʻaeʻaearmpit
Italian ascella
- ascellaarmpit
Polish pacha
- pachaarmpit
Russian подмышка
- подмышка (podmýška)armpit
Turkish koltuk altı
- koltuk altıarmpit
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
underarm. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/underarm
“underarm.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/underarm. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “underarm,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/underarm.
Source: underarm on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.