Mens Underwear and Sock Glossary

In an effort to make you a more informed shopper, we would like to provide you with a list of terms and terminology.

Mans Underwear and Sock Glossary:

A-Shirt

A T-shirt without sleeves and cut-away armholes. Stands for athletic shirt. View HisRoom's a-shirt department.

Balloon Seat

Also called a 3-panel back. A design for men’s boxers in which the pattern calls for additional fabric to be provided in the rear panels while at the same time having no center back seam. This creates a “balloon” effect over the seat, providing ease of movement with less strain on fabric and the body.

Bikini

The men's bikini style is cut lower than a low-rise brief. The top elastic sits approximately 4" below the waistline - below the navel. It still provides full rear coverage. The leg has a high cut design and the front never has a working fly.

Boxer

A man's cotton undergarment based on shorts worn in the sport of boxing. The traditional boxer is a full rise, full cut short with a 3" inseam. It loosely covers the body from the waist to just above mid thigh. It always has a working front fly. View HisRoom's boxer department.

Boxer Brief

The new boxer brief has the styling of the traditional biker pants, but cut a little shorter on the thigh length. It gets its name because its design took the best of both the brief and the boxer. It's fitted like a brief, but cut longer in the leg like a boxer. If it has a front fly, it will be in the design of a brief fly. View HisRoom's boxer brief department.

Brief

This is your traditional men's underpant. It has a full rise, meaning it covers the body from the waist to the top of the thigh. Also have either an overlap fly or a contour pouch. View HisRoom's brief department.

Creep Down

Term to describe the falling down of a sock off the calf.

Crew Length

A sock that extends beyond ankle length, but not beyond the largest part of the calf. Typically 9" to 12" in length.

Crewneck T-shirt

A high, round collarless neckline with a rib finishing. Popularized by crew racers, this neckline is now popular in T-shirts. View HisRoom's crewneck t-shirt department.

Elasticized Rib, Leg, Top, or Arch Panel

A portion of a sock that has an elastic yarn running through it, giving it the ability to fit snugly and to recover its original shape and size immediately after removing.

Fitted Heel and Toe

A sock that has a knit-in, or true heel pocket and a reciprocated (knit-in) toe pocket.

Flat Lock Stitching

A style of stitching common on men’s briefs. Rather than a seam, the two pieces of fabric are sewn together with a 3-thread zigzag stitch. This keeps the seam flat while providing reinforcement.

Full Cut Boxer

A fuller cut throughout the garment - including leg openings. Many times there will be a U-shaped panel between the legs to reduce binding and increase wearing comfort. Traditionally has a fly front. View HisRoom's full cut boxer department.

Functional Fly

The front fly on the garment actually works and provides an opening.

Gusset

A piece of fabric, either in a diamond or triangle shape, inserted in a garment to allow for more space and greater movement. Gussets typically appear under the arms of sleeves, along the inseam of underwear, and the sides of men's shirttails.

Henley shirt

A lightweight collarless knit shirt with a buttoned placket at the neckline and sometimes a contrasting lining at the placket and around the neck. The name comes from the crew-racing shirts worn at Henley, the site of a famed annual rowing regatta in the U.K. View HisRoom's henley shirt.

High Heel Splice

An area of knit reinforcement that falls above the heel pocket, and typically rises above the top of the shoe.

Inseam

The seam in a trouser or short that runs from the crotch to the hem. Leg length is measured based on the inseam.

Instep

That part of the sock lying over the top of your foot.

Lin-Toe Closure

A method of closing the toe of a sock by aligning the knit loops at the edge of each piece of knit fabric and using a single thread to join the knit fabric edges loop-for-loop. This type of closure leaves no ridge on the toe seam inside or outside of the sock.

Long Johns

A type of long (ankle-length) fitted drawers first worn in public by John L. Sullivan as a boxing outfit. The name now means long underwear bottoms. View HisRoom's long john department.

Low-Cut

A short length sock that falls below the anklebone. Usually 3" to 4" in length. View HisRoom's low-cut department.

Low-Rise Brief

With the new low cut pants on the market, this style has become very popular. The waistband rests on the hip approximately 3" below the waist. It still has side fabric, and the legs are traditional brief legs (not high cut). It may or may not have a front fly. View HisRoom's low-rise brief department.

Microfiber

Fabric made with microfiber means that the fabric’s filaments are extremely fine – much finer than silk. microfiber fabrics are thus light-weight, and look and feel luxurious. Because microfiber filaments can be packed so closely, they can prevent moisture from passing though, yet allow air flow.

Mid-Rise Brief

This is a lower sitting brief. The waistband sits approximately 2" below the waistline, just at or above the navel. Other than that, it has all the styling of a traditional brief including a working front fly.

Mini-Crew

A short crew sock with a typical length of between 5" and 7".

Mock Fly

The front fly of the garment has the appearance of a functioning fly, but in fact has been sewn shut. This is done primarily for modesty.

Mock Rib Leg or Ankle

The appearance of a true rib, achieved in Jersey fabric by using elastic.

Needle Hem Stitching

A stitch where two needles approximately 3/8” apart sews two rows of stitching simultaneously.

Over-The-Calf Length

A sock that extends above the largest part of the calf. Typically 15" or longer. View HisRoom's over-the-calf department.

Overlapping Fly

Name given to the traditional brief front fly where two layers of fabric are sewn on top of one another.

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