the.com/jacket
the layer that decides whether you're cold or the coolest person here
means A short coat that covers the upper body, worn for warmth or style, or by extension the outer covering of something like a book or a wire.
from From Old French 'jaquet,' a diminutive of 'jaque,' a kind of short, close-fitting peasant tunic. The 'jaque' itself is often linked to 'Jacques,' the generic French nickname for a common man (think how we say 'every Tom, Dick, and Harry') — so a jacket was, in a sense, the everyman's little coat. That said, some trace it instead to Spanish 'jaco' or to a word for chainmail; the trail gets muddy, so the 'Jacques' story, while popular and charming, is best held loosely.
- origin
- named after medieval peasant garment, the jacque
- life saver
- life jackets stay buoyant via trapped air or foam
- book armor
- dust jackets protect spines and sell the story
- war legacy
- bomber and field jackets started as military gear
- straitjacket
- once standard psychiatric restraint, now mostly escape acts
leather jacket — iconic garment worn by marlon brando in the wild one (1953) and james dean in rebel without a cause (1955)
flight jacket — a-2 bomber jacket worn by us pilots in world war ii, particularly famous from top gun (1986)
blazer — navy blue jacket with gold buttons originating from the hms blazer crew in the 1800s