Waistcoat \Waist"coat\, n.
   (a) A short, sleeveless coat or garment for men, worn under the coat, extending no lower than the hips, and covering the waist; a vest.
   (b) A garment occasionally worn by women as a part of fashionable costume.

Note: The waistcoat was a part of female attire as well as male . . . It was only when the waistcoat was worn without a gown or upper dress that it was considered the mark of a mad or profligate woman. --Nares.

Syn: See Vest.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)