Meaning & use
a wardrobe
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Meanings
nouncountable
A tall piece of furniture with doors and a rail inside, used for hanging clothes.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a wardrobe', 'two wardrobes'. It often takes 'in': 'in the wardrobe'.
Patterns
- a wardrobe in a bedroom
- put clothes in a wardrobe
- a built-in wardrobe
She hung her dress in the wardrobe.
We bought a new wardrobe for the bedroom.
There is not enough space in the wardrobe for all my coats.
nounsingular
All the clothes that someone owns.
Grammar: Used in the singular with a possessive: 'my wardrobe', 'her wardrobe'. Not used with 'a' in this sense.
Patterns
- someone's wardrobe
- a summer wardrobe
- update your wardrobe
She has a very stylish wardrobe.
He needs to buy a winter wardrobe.
The actress showed off her designer wardrobe at the event.
nounsingulartechnical
The department in a theater or film studio that keeps and cares for costumes.
Grammar: Often used with 'the': 'the wardrobe department'. Can also refer to the people working there.
Patterns
- the wardrobe department
- work in wardrobe
The wardrobe department created beautiful costumes for the play.
She got a job in wardrobe at the local theater.
Word forms
| plural | wardrobes |
|---|
Common combinations
- built-in wardrobe
- The bedroom has a built-in wardrobe.
- wardrobe door
- One of the wardrobe doors is broken.
- wardrobe malfunction
- The singer had a wardrobe malfunction on stage.
- a wardrobe full of clothes
- She has a wardrobe full of clothes but nothing to wear.
Synonyms and how they differ
- closet
- American English for a built-in cupboard for clothes; 'wardrobe' is more common in British English and can also be a freestanding piece.
- armoire
- A large, often ornate, freestanding wardrobe, especially an antique one.
- chest of drawers
- A piece of furniture with drawers for folded clothes, not for hanging them.
Word family
- wardrobe noun
- The base word itself; no common derived forms.
Commonly confused: a wardrobe or wardrobe?
a wardrobe vs wardrobe
Not to be confused with 'wardrobe' meaning a collection of clothes; context makes it clear.
Practice
She keeps her shoes at the bottom of the ______.
Choose one answer.
'Wardrobe' is the usual British word for a tall cupboard for clothes; 'closet' is American. 'Drawer' and 'shelf' are parts of furniture, not the whole piece.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “a wardrobe”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.