Crinolette

noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A whalebone, cane, or steel framework that was worn between petticoat and dress, attached at the waist and projecting backwards but not as far to the sides as in the case of a full hoop skirt. historical

    "The Princess of Wales has won two millinery victories this year -- both on the side of common sense. She has banished the crinolette, in spite of Paris. She has retained the small bonnet in fashion, still in spite of Paris."

Example

More examples

"The Princess of Wales has won two millinery victories this year -- both on the side of common sense. She has banished the crinolette, in spite of Paris. She has retained the small bonnet in fashion, still in spite of Paris."

Etymology

From crinoline + -ette.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.