Why are trousers called a pair

Ever Wonder Why? Search for: Search. Advertisements fund this website. Please disable your adblocking software or whitelist our website. Thank You! Around the time Poe was writing, a pair of pants had come to signify long drawers covering the whole leg s , while trousers referred to outer garments worn on top of them. So it was literally the case that there used to a two separate pieces to a pair of pants.

This lasted into the 19th century, when pants began to be manufactured as a single piece of clothing. Many ancient cultures, including the Egyptians and Vedic Hindus, wore loincloths as underwear. The Romans, male and female, wore a version of shorts or loincloths called subligaculum.

The women wore an additional piece of leather undergarment - strophium - around their upper body. For most of the Middle Ages, European women did not wear shorts or knickers.

Instead, they wore a single shift which covered their body much like a modern nightgown does. Men did wear linen shorts on occasion — which, as we saw before, evolved into pants or drawers.

The real evolution of different forms of underwear began in 19th Century Europe and America. Hence no pair. At one time it was common to speak of a pair of compasses for drawing , a pair of nutcrackers, or a pair of bellows.

But I would venture to say that in the U. Cookie banner We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. By choosing I Accept , you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. The Straight Dope homepage.

Filed under:. Question Asked by elizabethmc. In American English "a pair of pants" means trousers but in British English, pants as in underpants is singular,so bra and pants go together as they are underwear ,both singular,not a pair of underpants. I'm British and I'd say "pair of [under]pants". I am also familiar with the phrase " a pair of pants" or " a pair of underpants", just like a "pair of knickers".