n. 1. a. A loose-fitting garment, sleeved or sleeveless, extending to the knees and worn especially in ancient Greece and Rome. b. A medieval surcoat. 2. A long, plain, close-fitting jacket, usually having a stiff high collar and worn as part of a uniform. 3. A loose-fitting, pullover, collarless shirt that falls to the hip or thigh and is often drawn in at the waist and worn over leggings or pants. 4. Anatomy A coat or layer enveloping an organ or part. 5. Botany A loose membranous outer covering of a bulb or corm, as of an onion, tulip, or crocus. 6. See tunicle. [Middle English tunik, from Old French tunique, from Latin tunica, of Phoenician origin; akin to Hebrew kuttōnet, kətōnet, from Central Semitic *kuttān, *kittān; see CHITON.] |
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