jean

noun

ˈjēn 

plural jeans

1

: a durable twilled cotton cloth used especially for sportswear and work clothes

2

usually jeans

ˈjēnz 

: pants usually made of denim or jean

… strolling with royal puppy Lupo through Kensington Gardens near the couple's two-bedroom cottage in a pair of jeans and rain boots.

—Alicia Dennis et al.

Millions of people today buy designer jeans for double the price of equally durable generic jeans …

—Jared Diamond

see also blue jeans, mom jeans

Examples of jean in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Nina Dobrev cuts an effortlessly stylish figure in a leather jacket, red sweater and Loewe jeans while running errands in New York City on April 4. —Toria Sheffield, PEOPLE, 7 Apr. 2026

These stretchy, flattering jeans come in a range of washes that are both leg-lengthening and easy to move around in. —Annie Blackman, InStyle, 7 Apr. 2026

The dual-core yarn is engineered to produce long-wearing, comfort-stretch denim that looks and feels like a favorite pair of vintage jeans. —Angela Velasquez, Footwear News, 7 Apr. 2026

Beyond that initial purchase, there will be plenty more ways to make use of the loyalty program, which guarantees everything from free shipping and access to bi-annual Insider Event sales events to a $25 off birthday gift and complimentary jean hems. —Jessica Sulima, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

short for jean fustian, from Middle English Gene Genoa, Italy + fustian

First Known Use

1567, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing jean

• jean shorts

Rhymes for jean

• bean
• bein
• bien
• bouin
• chine
• clean
• deen
• diene
• gene
• glean
• keen
• lien

Kids Definition

jean

noun

ˈjēn 

1

: a heavy cotton cloth used especially for sportswear and work clothes

2

plural : pants made of jean, denim, or corduroy

Etymology

a shortened form of earlier jean fustian, literally "a fustian (heavy cotton cloth) from Genoa," from Middle English Gene "Genoa, Italy"