| Underwear, Sleepwear Article | Underwear Undergarments, also called "underwear", "underpants," "lingerie", or "panties" (undergarments for women), or sometimes "intimate clothing", and "pants" or "knickers" in British English, are clothes worn next to the skin, usually under other clothes. They are also known as 'Katch' or 'Katchie' and worn under Indian traditional clothing. Some clothing is specifically underwear, while some is also used as swimsuits (if made of suitable material), and both T-shirts and some shorts are suitable as underwear as well as outer clothing. Suitability as outer clothing is, apart from outdoor or indoor climate, largely a social and sometimes even a legal matter. One of the criteria for shorts not to be suitable as outer clothing may be that it has a fly that avoids exposure of the genitals just by an overlap of cloth, without buttons etc.[citation needed] In the English Regency times this garment, basic for both men and women, was straight cut, usually knee length, and had the elbow length sleeves set straight into the shoulders. The two major types of men's underpants are boxer shorts (shorts-length and loose; also known as "boxers") and briefs (smaller and tighter), which are also referred to as Y-fronts in British English. |
|