All Topics  
Pocket

 

   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link






 

Pocket



 
 

A pocket is a small bag
Bag

A bag is a non-Stiffness or semi-rigid container, made of paper, cloth, plastic, leather, or some other flexible material.A bag is used for packaging and/or carrying items....
 to hold small and important items, particularly a bag-like receptacle either fastened to or inserted in an article of clothing
Clothing

A feature of all human societies, except perhaps the most primitive, is the wearing of clothing or clothes, especially in public. The primary purpose of clothing is functional, as a protection from the weather....
.

In European clothing pockets began by being hung like purse
Purse

In American English, a purse is a small bag, also called a handbag or a pocketbook.In British English, a purse is a small money container similar to a wallet, but typically used by women and including a compartment for coins, with a handbag being considerably larger; indeed, a purse is often kept in a handbag....
s from a belt, which could be concealed beneath a coat
Coat

Coat can refer to any one of the following: *Coat , an article of clothing for humans.*Coat , the fur coat of an animal.*Coat of arms, a heraldic design used to identify a nation, city, family, or individual....
 or jerkin
Jerkin

The word jerkin can mean:-* A garment: see Jerkin .* Falconry's term for a male gyrfalcon.* In architecture the term jerkin roof, or Jerkinhead, is applied to a particular form of gable end, the gable being cut off half way up the roof and sloping back like a "hipped roof" to the edge....
 and reached through a slit in the outer garment.

The word appears in Middle English
Middle English

Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman conquest of England of 1066 and about 1470, when the #Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the introduction of the printing press into England by William...
 as poket, and is taken from a Norman
Norman language

Norman is a Romance languages and one of the Langues d'o?l. The northern Norman can be classified in the septentrional O?l languages with Picard language and Walloon language....
 diminutive of Old French
Old French

Old French was the Romance languages dialect continuum spoken in territories which span roughly the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium and Switzerland from around 1000 to 1300....
 poke, pouque, modern poche, cf.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Pocket'
Start a new discussion about 'Pocket'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia



A pocket is a small bag
Bag

A bag is a non-Stiffness or semi-rigid container, made of paper, cloth, plastic, leather, or some other flexible material.A bag is used for packaging and/or carrying items....
 to hold small and important items, particularly a bag-like receptacle either fastened to or inserted in an article of clothing
Clothing

A feature of all human societies, except perhaps the most primitive, is the wearing of clothing or clothes, especially in public. The primary purpose of clothing is functional, as a protection from the weather....
.

In European clothing pockets began by being hung like purse
Purse

In American English, a purse is a small bag, also called a handbag or a pocketbook.In British English, a purse is a small money container similar to a wallet, but typically used by women and including a compartment for coins, with a handbag being considerably larger; indeed, a purse is often kept in a handbag....
s from a belt, which could be concealed beneath a coat
Coat

Coat can refer to any one of the following: *Coat , an article of clothing for humans.*Coat , the fur coat of an animal.*Coat of arms, a heraldic design used to identify a nation, city, family, or individual....
 or jerkin
Jerkin

The word jerkin can mean:-* A garment: see Jerkin .* Falconry's term for a male gyrfalcon.* In architecture the term jerkin roof, or Jerkinhead, is applied to a particular form of gable end, the gable being cut off half way up the roof and sloping back like a "hipped roof" to the edge....
 and reached through a slit in the outer garment.

The word appears in Middle English
Middle English

Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman conquest of England of 1066 and about 1470, when the #Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the introduction of the printing press into England by William...
 as poket, and is taken from a Norman
Norman language

Norman is a Romance languages and one of the Langues d'o?l. The northern Norman can be classified in the septentrional O?l languages with Picard language and Walloon language....
 diminutive of Old French
Old French

Old French was the Romance languages dialect continuum spoken in territories which span roughly the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium and Switzerland from around 1000 to 1300....
 poke, pouque, modern poche, cf. pouch
Pouch

Pouch may refer to:* a Bag made of 2 layers of foil* Pouch used by female marsupials to rear their young through early infancy* Ileo-anal pouch, an internal reservoir formed by connecting the end of the small intestine to the rectum...
. The form "poke" is now only used dialectically, or in such proverbial sayings as "a pig in a poke," and possibly in the poke-bonnet, the coal-scuttle bonnet fashionable during the first part of the 19th century, and now worn by the female members of the Salvation Army
Salvation Army

The Salvation Army, an international movement, is an evangelical part of the Christian Church. It has a quasi-military structure and it was founded in 1865 in Great Britian as the East London Christian Mission by William Booth and Catherine Booth....
. More probably the name of the bonnet is connected with poke, to thrust forward, dig. The word "Dalton" has been used in certain circles (mainly in Canada), to refer to the "pocket". The origin of "Dalton" is shrouded in controversy with the french trying to claim it's name. Dutch
Dutch language

Dutch is a West Germanic languages spoken by over 22 million people as a first language, and about 5 million people as a second language."1% of the EU population claims to speak Dutch well enough in order to have a conversation." Outside the European Union the number of second language speakers of Dutch is very small. Most native...
 has poken, pook, a dagger
Dagger

A dagger is a typically double-edged blade used for stabbing or thrusting. They often fulfill the role of a companion weapon in close combat....
; Swedish
Swedish language

Swedish is a North Germanic languages language, spoken by around 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along the coast and on the ?land islands....
 has påk, a stick.

Historically, the term pocket referred to:
  • A pouch worn around the waist by women in the 17th to 19th centuries, mentioned in the rhyme Lucy Locket
    Lucy Locket

    Lucy Locket is an England nursery rhyme....
     if interpreted literally.
  • A sack in which hops
    Hops

    Hops are the female flower cones, also known as strobiles, of the hop . They are used primarily as a flavoring and stability agent in beer, though hops are also used for various purposes in other beverages and Herbalism....
     were stored, generally with a capacity of 168–224 lb (76–102 kg).


A fob pocket is a small pocket designed to hold an old style pocket watch
Pocket watch

A pocket watch is a watch that is made to be carried in a pocket, as opposed to a wristwatch, which is strapped to the wrist. They were the most common type of watch from their development in the 16th century until wristwatches became popular after World War I....
, sometimes found in men's trousers
Trousers

Trousers are an item of clothing worn on the lower part of the body from the waist to the ankles, covering both legs separately . Such items of clothing are often referred to as pants in countries such as Canada, South Africa and The United States....
 and waistcoat
Waistcoat

A waistcoat is a sleeveless upper-body garment worn over a dress shirt and necktie and below a Coat as a part of most men's formal wear, and as the third piece of the three-piece male business suit....
s.

External links