Polonaise (clothing)

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

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Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/polonaise-clothing

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the garment classification?Woman's gown, specifically a robe à la polonaise
2. What is the period of origin?Developed and popularized in the 1770s and 1780s
3. What is a Polonaise dress?A Polonaise is a fancy 18th‑century gown for women that has a big, draped overskirt that looks like a bow.
4. Why did the Polonaise look different from earlier gowns?It had a fitted bodice and a swaggied, voluminous overskirt, giving the dress a playful and fashionable look.

Robe à la polonaise: An 18th-century woman's dress characterized by a fitted bodice and a distinctively draped, gathered, or swagged overskirt.
Swagged: Describes fabric that is draped or gathered in a series of curves, loops, or festoons, often secured at intervals.
Petticoat: An underskirt worn beneath a dress or outer skirt, historically used to add fullness, shape, and modesty.
Silhouette: The overall outline or shape of a garment or figure, particularly as seen against a background.