Leggings
Leggings are close-fitting garments that cover the legs, typically made from stretch fabric and worn as trousers or beneath other clothing.
Knitted fabric: Textile made by interlooping yarns, producing a flexible structure that can stretch and recover. Most leggings use knitted structures to combine close fit with freedom of movement.
Athleisure: A style of clothing that combines athletic design with everyday casual wear. Leggings became a central garment in clothing worn both for exercise and daily activities.
Tights: Close-fitting legwear that usually covers the feet and is commonly made from thin hosiery fabric. Unlike most leggings, tights extend over the feet and are generally worn beneath other garments.
Hose (clothing): Historically, close-fitting garments covering the legs, worn in forms that changed across Europe over centuries. Hose is a broad historical predecessor to modern forms of close-fitting legwear.
Dress code: Rules or conventions governing what clothing is acceptable in a particular setting. Schools and workplaces sometimes regulate leggings because of differing expectations about coverage and appropriateness.
Elastane: A synthetic elastomeric fiber, also called spandex, that can stretch substantially and recover its shape. Its elastic recovery helps leggings cling to the body without remaining stretched out.
Yoga pants: Stretch trousers designed for yoga and related activities, often with a close fit and flexible waistband. This familiar subtype shows how leggings accommodate bending and sustained movement.
Jeggings: Stretch trousers designed to resemble jeans, combining denim-like details with a close, flexible fit. Jeggings borrow leggings' stretch while imitating the appearance of denim trousers.
Mary Quant: A British fashion designer associated with popularizing youthful, practical women's fashion in the 1960s. Her London boutique helped bring leggings into modern women's fashion during the 1960s.
Modesty: A social or personal norm governing the display of the body, often expressed through clothing. Arguments about leggings often turn on competing ideas about which body contours clothing should conceal.