drab

adj. wearing men’s clothing; dressed as a boy. Also n. Subjects: English, Apparel, Appearance, & Fashion, Sex & Sexuality, Acronym

Editorial Note: This term can apply to women, but it applies especially to cross-dressing or transvestite men who see traditional male clothing as drab, ‘charmless; boring.’ The common explanation of drag in the 1996 citation is a backronym, a fanciful initialism made after the word drag ‘feminine attire worn by a man’ already existed.

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Citations: 1994 Usenet: alt.transgendered (Mar. 3) “Re: Just some observations”: I have worn nothing *but* switchable clothing when out and about in drab for the past 6 months, with no notice. I wear either oxford-cut blouses or women’s turtlenecks, along with slim-fit ladie’s Levis and Reebok Princess sneakers. In fact, this has been so successful that part of this weekend’s planned activities is a trip to the Goodwill dropoff place to give away all of my “boy’ clothing. 1996 [Michelle Anne Steiner] Usenet: rec.org.mensa (Jan. 20) “Re: Reverse Discrimination—No Education for men”: “No men at RPI? They must be women in drag then.”…“That’s ‘drab.’” drag: DRessed As a Girl. drab: DRessed As a Boy. 2004 [androgy8] Curiosity Killed the Cat (California) (Dec. 15) “Second meaning for the word ‘drab’”: I learned a new word just now: drab. Dressed As a Boy.

Posted 16 Dec 04 | Permalink | Tell a Friend