sartorial
adjective

- relating to tailors or tailoring; elegance in dress or clothing style

- pertaining to a tailor or tailoring; refined and stylish in the manner of dress.

- relating to clothes and the way they are made or worn, especially in a stylish way.

Merriam-Webster, Oxford English Dictionary, Cambridge Dictionary

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WORD ORIGIN

“Sartorial” traces directly to classical Latin sartor, meaning "tailor" or "patcher." This noun derives from the verb sarcire, meaning "to patch, mend, or repair."

in Roman society, Sartor was the everyday word for tailors and clothing repairers, essential tradespeople. The related term sartorius meant "pertaining to a tailor."

The term persisted through the Middle Ages in scholarly and trade contexts, with sartor remaining the standard Latin word for tailor.

“Sartorial" appeared first in English texts in 1807 and the anatomical term "sartorius muscle" (the long thigh muscle used when sitting cross-legged, as tailors traditionally sat) was already in medical use.

The word gained sophistication and broader meaning throughout the Victorian era when it shifted from merely "pertaining to tailors" to "pertaining to elegant dress and style" and became associated with men's fashion specifically. Today "sartorial" carries sophisticated connotations, often appearing in fashion writing, style criticism, and descriptions of well-dressed individuals. It suggests not just clothing, but considered, elegant, and refined dress choices - far beyond the humble origins of mending and patching.

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FAMOUS QUOTES

- "Sartorial elegance: when clothes whisper what words cannot." — Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890).

- "Sartorial elegance is the poetry of appearance." — Yves Saint-Laurent, interview (1970s)

- “Sartorial elegance is not being noticed, but being remembered.” — Giorgio Armani (1980s)

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SYNONYMS

chic (clothing), classic style, dapper (dress), debonair (fashion), dressed for success (to kill, to up to the nines), elegant wardrobe, impeccably dressed, impeccable style, looking every inch the part, natty, outfit on point, panache, polished appearance (look), pressed and presentable, red carpet ready, refined attire, SARTORIAL ELEGANCE, smartly attired (dressed), sophisticated dress, suave, stylish garb, stylishness, tailored style, tasteful clothing, urbane, well-dressed

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SMUGGLE
 OWAD into a conversation today, say something like:

“I really like Oscar Wilde’s definition of SARTORIAL ELEGANCE: ‘When clothes whisper what words cannot’. “

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P L E A S E   S U P P O R T   O W A D