🇬🇧 Corset meaning: English Vocabulary Flash Card

A corset is a special piece of clothing that wraps tightly around a person’s middle, from the chest to the hips. It is usually made with strong fabric and sometimes has hard pieces inside, like thin strips of bone or metal, to keep it stiff. In the past, many women wore corsets under their dresses to make their waists look very small and to help them sit and stand very straight. Today, corsets are mostly used for costumes, fashion, or historical dress-up, and they can feel quite tight and tricky to put on.

I asked why people wore a corset, and the museum guide said, “Apparently, comfort wasn’t invented yet.”

She said her corset taught her good posture, but also taught her how much she loves sweatpants.

She tried to eat cake while wearing a corset and ended up just patting it sadly with her fork.

The corset made her stand up so straight that everyone thought she had swallowed a broomstick.

During dress-up, my cousin wore a corset and announced, “I have lost my ability to bend.”

She stood while her friend tightened the corset, hands moving over the stiff fabric. She eyed the corset, nervous. The corset squeezed her waist; she swallowed, breath short, but the corset made her posture straight and new. At the ball she smiled, then late she loosened the corset and laughed, free and relieved.

This word is at the C2 level, which means it represents the highest mastery of English. It’s often used in specialized or highly formal contexts and helps you communicate with precision and subtlety, much like a native speaker.

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