means A close-fitting, one-piece garment that covers the torso and leaves the legs bare, worn by dancers, gymnasts, and acrobats.

from Named for Jules Léotard, a 19th-century French acrobat who popularized the flying trapeze and performed in a skin-tight knitted garment of his own design. He called it the maillot; the English-speaking world later honored him by naming the outfit itself a 'leotard,' a word that didn't appear in print until after his death.