underwear

Etymology

From under- + -wear. Compare Dutch ondergoed, German Unterwäsche, Swedish underkläder.

noun

1. Clothes worn next to the skin, underneath outer clothing.
   Don't scratch and bite, my little bear, you'll soon need bigger underwear. 1998, Banjo-Kazooie, Rareware
   As a couple of soldiers sing a dirty song, he loses sight of the edge of the stage and falls off in the middle of his dance like a seasoned slapstick artist, his white legs in the air and his filthy underwear visible to all. 2016-06-30, Stefan Hertmans, War and Turpentine, Random House, →OCLC, page 202
2. (colloquial) Underpants (boxers, briefs, panties, etc) and often bras.
   “A thong,” she answered him breathlessly. Now completely turned on by the fact that his man was sniffing her underwear and grinning like a tiger that took down its prey. That is if tigers could smile and still look sexy. 2006, Toni L. Meilleur, Tournament of Fire