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cardigan

Apparel
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A knitted jacket or sweater that opens down the front, often with buttons, named after the Earl of Cardigan, appearing in poetry as a garment of warmth, homeliness, and gentle domesticity.

Detailed Definition
The cardigan, with its practical front opening, is a staple of informal comfort in 20th and 21st century poetry. Its knitted texture invites tactile description—ribbing, cables, soft wool—and its buttoning action can be a small, meditative ritual. Poets use the cardigan to evoke the feeling of being cared for, as in a grandparent's cardigan worn on a chilly morning, or as a garment that holds the shape and scent of its wearer. In love poetry, a borrowed cardigan is a tender act of exchange, its sleeves too long, its body too warm. In academic and intellectual verse, the cardigan appears on professors and writers, suggesting a life of study rather than physical labor. Its lack of pretension makes it a reliable marker of sincerity, often contrasted with more formal or fashionable outerwear.
Example
Example in poetry:
"the speaker remembers how her friend Cathy had a blue, machine-made cardigan and how her own mother knitted a hand-made red one" (Imtiaz Dharker, "Stitch"); "He had on the blue cardigan with the buttons done up all the way to the top" (Anne Carson, "Father's Old Blue Cardigan"); "I hope you're wearing the cardigan I got you this Christmas" (Francie Lynch); "you, my dear cardigan, make me feel like just plain me: a girl with options and layers" ("ode to the cardigan"); "The cardigan's worn elbows held the shape of years of leaning on tables"; "She wrapped his cardigan around her like a second skin"
Additional Notes
The cardigan is a staple of informal comfort in 20th and 21st century poetry. Its knitted texture invites tactile description—ribbing, cables, soft wool—and its buttoning action can be a small, meditative ritual in verse. Poets use the cardigan to evoke the feeling of being cared for, as in a grandparent's cardigan worn on a chilly morning, or as a garment that holds the shape and scent of its wearer. In love poetry, a borrowed cardigan is a tender act of exchange, its sleeves too long, its body too warm. In academic and intellectual verse, the cardigan appears on professors and writers, suggesting a life of study rather than physical labor. Its lack of pretension makes it a reliable marker of sincerity, often contrasted with more formal or fashionable outerwear. The cardigan is closely related to the sweater, pullover, and waistcoat. Students should note that the cardigan's open front distinguishes it from the pullover, and its buttoned design allows for imagery of fastening and unfastening that can parallel emotional opening or closing.
Also Known As
buttoned sweater knitted jacket open-front wool
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