What is Underwear?
[[File:Black underwear on the modelling at hair salon.jpg|thumb|Women's underwear on dummy model in the hairdress shop in Hong Kong]] [[Image:Knickers1.jpg|thumb|Women's underwear panties or knickers]] [[Image:Boxer 002.jpg|thumb|Men's [[boxer shorts]]]] {{Undergarment}} '''Underwear''' are [[Clothing|clothes]] worn under other clothes, often next to the skin. They keep outer clothes from being made dirty by [[sweat]]. They also shape the body and provide support for parts of it, and in cold weather help the wearer to keep warm. Underwear can be used to protect the wearer's modesty, as well as to make them look sexy. Special types of underwear have [[Religion|religious]] importance. Some items of clothing are made to be worn as underwear, while others such as [[T-shirt]]s and certain types of [[shorts]] can be used both as underwear and as outer clothing. If made of suitable fabric, some types of underwear can serve as nightwear or [[swimsuit]]s. Items of underwear commonly worn by women today include [[brassiere]]s (bras) and panties (also known as knickers), while men wear [[briefs]], trunks, [[boxer shorts]] or [[boxer briefs]]. Items worn by both women and men include T-shirts, sleeveless shirts, [[Bikini panty|bikini underwear]], thongs, T-fronts, and [[G-string]]s. In countries where the weather is cold, long underwear can be worn to keep warm. ==Different words== There are a number of different words for underwear: 'underclothes', 'underclothing', and 'undergarments' are more formal words. === Female === In casual situations, underwear may be called 'undies'. In Australia, one may hear underwear being called 'Reg Grundys' or 'Reginalds' (rhyming [[slang]] for 'undies'), while in the UK the word 'smalls' is sometimes used. Different types of women's undergarments are known together as 'lingerie' (pronounced ''<small>LAWN</small>-zhur-ray''). They may also be called 'intimate clothing' or simply 'intimates'. Words for the top half of female lingerie: 'bras', obviously. Note the use of 'teddy' for one-pie