shirtsleeve
UK[ˈʃɜːt.sliːv]US[ˈʃɝːt.sliːv]
n
the sleeve of a shirt.
adj
(shirtsleeves) not wearing a jacket or coat over one's shirt; informal or working without formality.
Morpheme Breakdown
shirt
sleeve
shirt
sleeve
Etymology
the word "shirtsleeve" is a transparent compound formed from two old english nouns, "shirt" and "sleeve." "shirt" originates from proto-germanic skurtijǭ, related to the concept of a short garment, while "sleeve" derives from proto-germanic slaubjǭ, referring to a covering for the limb. the compound literally means "the sleeve of a shirt." its modern adjectival sense, describing an informal state of being without a jacket, evolved metonymically from the literal image of a person working in just their shirt sleeves, symbolizing practicality and a lack of ceremonial pretense.
Analysis
Structure: shirt + sleeve
- shirt: from old english scyrte, a short garment or tunic. a noun denoting an upper-body garment.
- sleeve: from old english slīef, slȳf, the part of a garment that covers the arm. a noun denoting a specific part of clothing.
Examples
he rolled up his shirtsleeve before washing his hands.
the meeting was a shirtsleeve affair, with everyone relaxed and focused on solving the problem.
she worked in shirtsleeves at her desk, surrounded by papers.