cloche

/kloʊʃ/

/kləʊʃ/

Other forms: cloches

A cloche is a rounded, snug-fitting hat that was especially popular in the early 20th century. The perfect finishing touch on your 1920s flapper costume would be a cloche pulled on over your bobbed hair.

In French, cloche means "bell," from the Latin clocca, also meaning "bell." In English, the word's original definition was "bell-shaped cover," and it's still used that way today. A glass cover over a plant or decorative object is a cloche, and any bell-shaped cover made of metal, glass, or ceramic that is used to keep food warm or protect a cake or a bowl of potato salad is also a cloche. The hat was named for its own bell-like shape around 1907.

Definitions of cloche

1. noun

   a close-fitting, bell-shaped hat
   type of:

   millinery, woman's hat

   hats for women; the wares sold by a milliner
2. noun

   a rigid, domed cover used to protect food or retain its heat
3. noun

   a low, see-through cover put over plants to protect them from the cold
   type of:

   protection, protective cover, protective covering

   a covering that is intend to protect from damage or injury