English Clothing Vocabulary

Level: A1. You get dressed every morning, so clothing words are some of the first you can use for real. This page gives you the everyday clothes, shoes and accessories you need, grouped by type, each with a plain meaning and a short example you can copy.

By the end of this page you can…

…name the clothes you wear each day, say what you have on, ask for a size, and use the verb ‘wear’ correctly in the present and past.

How this list was chosen

Every word here comes from the English frequency list (hermitdave/FrequencyWords), which ranks words by how often they appear in a large collection of everyday subtitles. From that list we kept the clothing words a beginner needs and grouped them by type rather than by rank. The Rank column is the word’s real position in the list — a lower number means the word is more common.

Everyday clothes

Rank	Word	Meaning	Example
790	clothes	things you wear (always plural)	I put my clothes in the bag.
941	dress	a one-piece garment for women	She wore a blue dress to the party.
1215	suit	a matching jacket and trousers	He wears a grey suit to work.
1373	pants	trousers (American English)	These pants are too long.
1611	shirt	a top with a collar and buttons	Iron your shirt before the meeting.
4890	skirt	a garment that hangs from the waist	Her skirt is black and short.
5601	jeans	casual trousers of denim (plural)	My jeans are old but comfortable.
5797	trousers	trousers (British English, plural)	These trousers fit well.
6073	shorts	short trousers for warm weather (plural)	Wear shorts; it is hot today.

Coats, warm clothes and layers

Rank	Word	Meaning	Example
1410	hat	something you wear on your head	Take a hat; the sun is strong.
1855	coat	a warm outer garment	Put on your coat before you go out.
2076	jacket	a short, light coat	He hung his jacket on the chair.
3050	cap	a soft hat with a peak	The boy wears a red cap.
3840	gloves	coverings for your hands (a pair)	I lost one of my gloves.
5110	sweater	a warm knitted top (jumper in BrE)	This sweater is very warm.
6367	scarf	a cloth you wear round your neck	She wrapped a scarf round her neck.

Shoes and accessories

Rank	Word	Meaning	Example
801	bag	a container you carry things in	My keys are in my bag.
1114	shoes	coverings for your feet (a pair)	These shoes are comfortable.
1673	tie	a strip of cloth worn round the collar	He wears a red tie to work.
1916	pocket	a small bag sewn into clothes	I keep my phone in my pocket.
2039	glasses	lenses you wear to see (plural)	I can’t read without my glasses.
2686	belt	a strap worn round the waist	Tighten your belt one notch.
2878	boots	strong shoes that cover the ankle	Wear boots in the rain.
3981	socks	soft coverings for your feet (a pair)	Put on clean socks.

Talking about clothes

Rank	Word	Meaning	Example
789	wear	to have clothes on	What will you wear tonight?
1184	fit	to be the right size	This jacket fits me well.
1510	size	how big something is	Do you have this in a larger size?
2368	uniform	clothes for a job or school	The children wear a school uniform.
2442	button	a small round fastener	Do up the top button.

Example sentences

Play each line, then say it aloud. These use the clothing words in natural, everyday patterns.

I put on my clothes and left the house.

'Put on' is the action of dressing.
What are you wearing to the party?

'Wear' = have clothes on; present continuous for a plan.
She wore a long red dress.

Past of wear is 'wore'.
My jeans are blue, and they fit well.

'Jeans' is plural: they, not it.
These trousers are too tight.

'Trousers' takes a plural verb: are.
Take a coat; it is cold outside.

A coat for cold weather.
He forgot his gloves on the bus.

Gloves come as a pair.
Do you have this shirt in a bigger size?

Asking for a size in a shop.
This jacket does not fit me.

'Fit' = be the right size.
Put on clean socks and your shoes.

Socks and shoes come in pairs.
I keep my keys in my coat pocket.

A pocket is part of a garment.
He wears a suit and tie to the office.

Formal work clothes.
Can I try this on?

A useful phrase in a clothes shop.
The children wear a school uniform.

'Uniform' for school or work clothes.
I can't see the board without my glasses.

'Glasses' is always plural.
Take off your wet boots at the door.

'Take off' to remove clothes.
Wear shorts and a cap; it is sunny.

Warm-weather clothes.
Do up the top button of your shirt.

'Button' as a fastener.

Recap cheat-sheet

A few patterns to remember before the quiz.

Cheat sheet: English clothing words — plural garments, put on and wear, British and American pairs

Quick recap before the quiz.

Point	Example
always plural	trousers, jeans, shorts, glasses
count a pair	a pair of jeans, two pairs of socks
action vs state	put on / take off vs wear
BrE vs AmE	trousers vs pants

Practice

Clothing practice

Try each one, then press Check. No sign-up, nothing is sent anywhere — it all runs in your browser.

1 Match each word to its meaning.

coat Match for coat
belt Match for belt
size Match for size
uniform Match for uniform

Show answer

coat → a warm outer garment
belt → a strap worn round the waist
size → how big something is
uniform → clothes for a job or school

Linking a word to its meaning helps you recall it faster.

2 Complete the verb: While it rained, I ____ a coat. (past of wear)

Hint: wear is irregular

Show answer

wore — The past of 'wear' is 'wore'.

3 Complete with the right verb form: These jeans ____ too small. (be)

Hint: jeans is plural

Show answer

are — 'Jeans' takes a plural verb: are, not is.

4 Which is correct English? I bought a jean. I bought a pair of jeans. I bought a jeans. I bought two jean.

Show answer

I bought a pair of jeans. — Plural garments are counted with 'a pair of'.

5 Pick the action of getting dressed. wear my coat put on my coat fit my coat size my coat

Show answer

put on my coat — 'Put on' is the action; 'wear' is the state.

6 Put the words in order.

Show answer

what are you wearing ? — Question word order: What are you wearing?

Quiz

Next set: English House & Furniture Vocabulary
Previous set: English Body & Health Vocabulary
Grammar for describing: The verb to be, Present simple (affirmative)
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English Clothing Vocabulary

By the end of this page you can…

How this list was chosen

Everyday clothes

Coats, warm clothes and layers

Shoes and accessories

Talking about clothes

Example sentences

Recap cheat-sheet

Practice

Clothing practice

Quiz

Clothing quiz

Next

All English vocabulary topics

Vocabulary