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{{short description|Various types of loose-fitting outer garment}}
{{About|the clothing worn until 18th century|its 19th century successor|frock coat|the military term|frocking}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{confusing|date=June 2018}}
{{more citations needed|date=December 2015}}
}}

[[File:Charles Blair (detail of The Honorable Henry Fane (1739–1802) with Inigo Jones and Charles Blair.jpg|thumb|upright|Charles Blair in a frock (c. 1761–66), a coat with a flat collar.]]

'''Frock''' has been used since [[Middle English]] as the name for an article of [[clothing]], typically [[coat (clothing)|coat]]-like, for men and women.

==Terminology==
In [[British English]] and in [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] countries the word may be used as an alternative term for a girl's or woman's [[dress]], in particular for a dress suitable for a [[Smart casual|smart]] occasion but (in UK English usage) with a hemline higher than a full-length ballgown. In [[Australia]] it is frequently used this way, with the phrase "to frock up" meaning to wear a formal dress or gown for a special occasion.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.macquariedictionary.com.au/ |title=Macquarie Dictionary |access-date=6 May 2013}} {{subscription required}}</ref>

Relatedly, a [[frock coat]] is a men's [[Coat (clothing)|coat]] style of the 19th century, characterized by full skirts reaching to the lower thigh or knee. Despite the similarity in the name, the [[frock coat]] should be regarded as being a distinct garment quite separate from the frock. In the French language the [[frock coat]] is called {{lang|fr|une redingote}} (from English "riding coat"), and so, unlike the English term, implies no immediate relationship to the frock which is called {{lang|fr|une fraque}}. Indeed, the modern French word for a tail coat is {{lang|fr|un frac}} which better betrays the historical relationship between the tail coat and the frock. In construction the [[frock coat]] could scarcely be more different from the frock for unlike the latter it is usually double breasted, lacks any pockets, lacks a high collar, has V-shaped lapels, is closely fitted and is constructed with a waist seam.

== History ==
[[Image:Forsterundsohn.jpg|thumb|left|[[Johann Reinhold Forster]] with his son [[Georg Forster]] (1780) in frocks in [[Tahiti]], by [[John Francis Rigaud]] (1742–1810).]]
Originally, a ''frock'' was a loose, long garment with wide, full [[sleeve]]s, such as the [[Religious clothing|habit]] of a [[monk]] or [[priest]], commonly belted.  (This is the origin of the modern term [[defrock]] or unfrock, meaning "to eject from the [[clergy|priesthood]]".)

Throughout the [[early modern period]], "frock" continually applied to various types of clothing, but generally denoting a loosely fitted garment in practice seemingly ranging in styles from resembling a [[Banyan (clothing)|banyan]] to a [[tunic]].

From the 16th century to the early 20th century, ''frock'' was applied to a woman's [[Dress (garment)|dress]] or [[gown]], in the fashion of the day, often indicating an unfitted, comfortable garment for wear in the house, or (later) a light overdress worn with a [[Slip (clothing)|slip]] or underdress.

From the 17th century on, a ''frock'' was a thigh- or full-length loose outer garment worn by [[shepherd]]s, workmen, and farm workers in [[Great Britain]], generally of heavy [[linen]] with a broad flat [[collar (clothing)|collar]], now usually called a [[smock-frock]]. In some areas, this traditional frock buttons up the front in the manner of a [[coat (clothing)|coat]], while in others it is a pullover style.

As such, a ''frock'' remains a dense knitted overgarment worn by [[sailor]]s and [[fisherman|fishermen]], as ''guernsey frock'', ''jersey frock'' (now usually simply [[Guernsey (clothing)|guernsey]] and [[Jersey (clothing)|jersey]]).

===18th century===
In 18th century [[United Kingdom|Britain]] and the [[United States]], a ''frock'' was an unfitted men's coat for [[hunting]] or other country pursuits, with a broad, flat collar, derived from the traditional working-class frock.

The precise historical evolution of the frock after the second half of the 18th century is obscure, as is its contrasting features to the [[justaucorps]], the evening wear dress coat, and the supplanting 19th century [[frock coat]].

===19th century===
{{see also|frock coat}}
[[File:Man's silk and wool twill frock coat c. 1820.jpg|right|thumb|upright|Man's wool and silk twill [[frock coat]], [[France]] (1816–20), illustrating the shift from previous 18th century connotations of a frock to early 19th century definition of a (dark) frock coat. [[Los Angeles County Museum of Art]].]]

Some late in the 18th century versions had it made with a cutaway front without a waist seam. This may have been one of the predecessors of the [[frock coat]] or at least the dress coat with horizontally cutaway fronts worn for daytime wear by the early 19th century and from which the modern-day evening wear tail [[dress coat]] for [[white tie]] is derived. The frock coat in turn became cut away into the modern [[morning coat]], giving us the two modern version of [[tail coat]]s, but the evolution is blurry. Notwithstanding, it seems as if the frock was gradually supplanted by the frock coat in the early 19th century, whereas the former frock style was relegated to evening wear.

Shapewise, also the [[great coat]] may similarly be historically derived from the frock {{who|date=November 2018}} as it similarly is single breasted, with a high and broad collar, waist pockets, and also lacked a waist seam early in its history as can be seen in an example{{which|date=December 2015}} in the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]], [[London]].

==Contemporary feminine connotations==
[[File:Hitomi (19522048512).jpg|thumb|left|The "frock" as a dress, worn by a woman.]]
In contemporary times, a "frock" may still designate a woman's or girl's, or child's dress or light overdress.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books/about/Carefree_Clothes_for_Girls.html?id=aBOuvrYcX1AC Carefree Clothes for Girls: 20 Patterns for Outdoor Frocks, Playdate Dresses, and More]—book by Junko Okawa (Shambhala Publications, 2009)</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120721045804/http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/frock "frock"], ''Oxford Dictionary''</ref>
{{clear}}

==See also==
* [[Frock coat]]
* [[Justaucorps]]
* "[[Oil frock]]", a type of sailor's [[oilskin]]
* [[Tailcoat]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}
* ''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]''
* Picken, Mary Brooks: ''The Fashion Dictionary'', Funk and Wagnalls, 1957.
* Walker, George: ''The Tailor's Masterpiece: All Kinds of Coats'', 1838 revised edition, reprinted by [[R.L. Shep]], 2001. {{ISBN|0-914046-28-4}}.
* Waugh, Norah: ''The Cut of Men's Clothes 1600–1900'', Routledge, 1964. {{ISBN|0-87830-025-2}}.

== External links ==
{{commons category|Frocks}}
* {{cite EB1911|wstitle=Frock|volume=11|page=238}}
* [http://www.apparelsearch.com/glossary.htm ApparelSearch glossary of textile and apparel terms]

{{Historical clothing|state=expanded}}

[[Category:16th-century fashion]]
[[Category:17th-century fashion]]
[[Category:18th-century fashion]]
[[Category:19th-century fashion]]
[[Category:20th-century fashion]]
[[Category:Dresses]]
[[Category:Frock coats]]
[[Category:Robes and cloaks]]