What is "knickerbockers"

knickers \knick"ers\, n. pl.

1. The name for a style of loose-fitting short trousers, gathered in and ending at the knees; smallclothes; called also knickerbockers.

   Syn: breeches, knee breeches, knee pants, knickerbockers.

2. Underpants, especially of women; panties. [British]

   Syn: bloomers, pants, drawers.

n. men or boys' baggy knee trousers, of a type particularly popular in the early 20th century.

n. trousers ending above the knee [syn: breeches, knee breeches, knee pants, knickers]

Knickerbockers are a form of men's or boys' baggy-kneed trousers particularly popular in the early 20th century United States. Golfers' plus twos and plus fours wore breeches of this type. Before World War II, skiers often wore knickerbockers too, usually ankle-length.

Until after World War I, in many English-speaking countries, boys customarily wore short pants in summer and knickerbockers ("knickers" or "knee pants") in winter. (In British English knickers means underwear worn by women.) At the onset of puberty, they graduated to long trousers. In that era, the transition to "long pants" was a major rite of passage. See, for example, the classic song Blues in the Night by Johnny Mercer: "My mammy done told me, when I was in knee-pants, my mammy done told me, son...".

Baseball players wear a stylized form of knickerbockers, although the pants have become less baggy in recent decades and some modern ballplayers opt to pull the trousers close to the ankles. The white trousers worn by American football officials are knickerbockers, and while they have become less baggy, they are still worn ending shortly below the knee. In recent years, the NFL has equipped its officials with long trousers rather than knickers in cold weather.