What does wardrobe mean?
Wardrobe most commonly means a person's collection of clothes, especially the garments available for different occasions or seasons. The word can suggest a range of choices or a coordinated personal style: someone might describe an extensive wardrobe as varied, practical, or elegant. In a domestic or architectural setting, a wardrobe instead means a room, cupboard, or fitted storage unit where clothes are kept. The distinction between the collection and its container has developed historically: the word originally referred to a place for storing clothes, then came to mean the clothes themselves. Today both meanings remain common in British and American English. Wardrobe is especially useful when discussing clothing as a collection, a personal style, or the organization of a household's garments, rather than focusing on a single item of clothing.
nounA collection of clothes belonging to a person or group; also, a room or freestanding cupboard in which clothes are stored.
- A person's or group's collection of clothes.
- A room or cupboard in which clothes are kept.
"Her wardrobe was elegant and practical, with a restrained palette of neutral colors."
"He refreshed his wardrobe with shirts, jackets, and well-made shoes."
"The old bedroom had been converted into a spacious walk-in wardrobe."
The standard plural is wardrobes.
"The shop specializes in compact wardrobes for small bedrooms."
A wardrobe was once literally a “room for clothes”—before it came to mean the clothes themselves.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does wardrobe come from?
Wardrobe comes from Old French garde-robe, literally “room for clothes,” with garde meaning “keep” or “watch” and robe meaning “clothes.” The English word initially referred to a place where garments were stored. Its meaning later expanded from the storage place to the collection of clothes kept there, and eventually to a person's overall set of clothes.
Related word forms
How wardrobe is actually used
In its most common sense, wardrobe refers to all the clothes owned or available to someone. It may suggest variety or a coordinated collection, while in furniture-related contexts it denotes a dedicated storage space.