What does fedora mean?
A fedora is a soft-brimmed felt hat whose crown is indented lengthwise and pinched at the front, creating the distinctive shape recognized worldwide from photographs of the early twentieth century. First popularized in the late 1880s and named after Princess Fedora, a character in Victorien Sardou's play Fédora, it became a staple of menswear through the 1920s to the 1950s, worn by businessmen, Hollywood stars, and fictional detectives alike. Today the word evokes vintage glamour, film noir, and classic tailoring, and it remains in use both in traditional menswear and as a unisex fashion accessory revived periodically on runways. The term is occasionally used informally to mean a man, reflecting its mid-century associations. Few items of clothing carry as much cultural shorthand as the fedora, which is why the word persists so vividly in English.
nounA soft felt hat with a fairly wide brim and an indented crown that is typically pinched at the front, classically worn by men.
- A soft felt hat with an indented, pinched crown and a wide brim.
- (informal) A man, especially one seen as old-fashioned or associated with mid-century style.
"He tipped his grey fedora as he stepped off the train."
"She pulled the brim of her fedora low against the afternoon sun."
"In the film noir, every detective seems to wear a trench coat and a fedora."
Regular English plural.
"The rack was lined with fedoras in every shade of grey."
The fedora is named after a character — Princess Fedora, heroine of an 1880s play whose costume hat started a fashion craze.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of fedora
The word 'fedora' derives from Fédora, the title role in Victorien Sardou's 1882 play starring Sarah Bernhardt, who wore such a hat in the production. The name Fedor (Fédora) is ultimately from the Greek Theodoros, meaning 'gift of God', via Russian Fyodor. Cognates sharing this Greek root include Theodore, Dorothea, Isidore, and Pandora.
How fedora is actually used
The word is neutral in register but carries strong retro connotations of the 1920s–1950s, gangster films, and vintage menswear; in recent decades it has also been adopted in women's fashion. A secondary informal sense refers to a man, echoing mid-century slang.
Easily confused with fedora
A trilby has a narrower, sharply upturned brim, while a fedora has a wider brim that is usually worn with a soft snap down at the front.