Chifforobe

Chifforobe
A chifforobe

A chifforobe is a closet-like piece of furniture that combines a long space for hanging clothes (that is, a wardrobe or armoire) with a chest of drawers.[1] Typically the wardrobe section runs down one side of the piece, while the drawers occupy the other side.[2] It may have two enclosing doors or have the drawer fronts exposed and a separate door for the hanging space.[3][2]

Chifforobes were first advertised in the 1908 Sears, Roebuck Catalogue, which described them as "a modern invention, having been in use only a short time."[citation needed] The term itself is a portmanteau of the words chiffonier and wardrobe.[4]

The word is used in the United States, primarily in the southern portion of the country,[5] in Puerto Rico,[6] and in Cuba. Its use has been attested as far apart as Georgia and Vermont.[3] In those references, it was used as a water closet or potty.[3] The word has been used in Texas, but is not as common as its synonyms such as bureau or dresser.[2]

The word is usually pronounced shif-uh-rohb or shif-rohb. Alternative spellings include: chiffarobe, chifforobe, chifferobe, chiffrobe, chifrobe, and shifferobe.

In popular culture

  • Another author, Judth Ortiz Cofer, recalled a "monstrous chifforobe" from her youth in Puerto Rico,[6]
  • There are also many references to "chifforobe" in 'Kathryn Stockett's The Help.
  • In the Venture Bros. season one finale, "Return to Spider-Skull Island", Dr. Thaddeus Venture is splitting his inheritance with his long-lost brother, and offers to give him "the old busted-up chiffarobe".
  • The chifforobe is an important element of the fil Pride of the Yankees. Lou Gehrig's mother purchases a chifforobe as a wedding present for newlywed Lou and his bride Eleanor. The fact that Eleanor is not pleased with it has ramifications for her relationship with her mother-in-law.
  • In the Season 2 Airwolf episode "Severence Pay," the use of the word "chifforobe" gives away the identity of the Firm's traitor/mole, Barnes.
  • In a Family Guy episode, when Brian is returning the keys to the 50 year old lady he was dating.

References

Notes
  1. ^ Dictionary.com website. n.d.
  2. ^ a b c Elmer Bagby Atwood, The regional vocabulary of Texas, p. 44 (University of Texas Press, 1962) ISBN 9780292770089. Found at Google Books. Accessed July 7, 2011.
  3. ^ a b c Walter J. Brown, J.J. Brown and Thomas E. Watson: Georgia politics, 1912-1928, p. 24 (Mercer University Press, 1989) ISBN 9780865543225. Found at Google Books. Accessed July 7, 2011.
  4. ^ Catherine O'Reilly, Did Thomas Crapper Really Invent the Toilet?: The Inventions That Changed Our Homes and Our Lives, p. 30 (Skyhorse Publishing Inc., 2008) ISBN 9781602393479. Found at Google Books. Accessed July 7, 2011.
  5. ^ Frederic Gomes Cassidy, Joan Houston Hall, Dictionary of American regional English, Volume 4 (Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2002) ISBN 9780674008847. Found at Google Books. Accessed July 7, 2011.
  6. ^ a b Judith Ortiz Cofer, Silent dancing: a partial remembrance of a Puerto Rican childhood, p. 24 (Edition 2, Arte Publico Press, 1990) ISBN 9781558850156. Found at Google Books. Accessed July 7, 2011.
  7. ^ Horton Foote, To kill a mockingbird ; Tender mercies ; and, The trip to Bountiful: three screenplays, p. 59 (Grove Press, 1989) ISBN 9780802131256. Found at Google Books. Accessed July 7, 2011.
  8. ^ Dorothy Allison, Bastard Out of Carolina, (Penguin, 1993) ISBN 9780452269576. Found at Google Books. Accessed July 7, 2011.

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • chifforobe — or chifferobe [shif′ə rōb΄] n. [ CHIFFO(NIER) + (WARD)ROBE] a wardrobe with drawers or shelves on one side …   English World dictionary

  • chifforobe — noun Etymology: chiffonier + wardrobe Date: 1908 a combination of wardrobe and chest of drawers …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • chifforobe — /shif euh rohb , shif rohb /, n. a piece of furniture having both drawers and space for hanging clothes. Also, chifferobe, chiffrobe /shif rohb/. [1905 10, Amer.; CHIFFO(NIER) + (WARD)ROBE] * * * …   Universalium

  • chifforobe — noun A piece of furniture consisting of a wardrobe combined with a chest of drawers …   Wiktionary

  • chifforobe — chif·fo·robe …   English syllables

  • chifforobe — chif•fo•robe [[t]ˈʃɪf əˌroʊb, ˈʃɪfˌroʊb[/t]] n. fur a piece of furniture having both drawers and space for hanging clothes • Etymology: 1905–10, amer.; chiffo (nier) + (ward) robe …   From formal English to slang

  • chifforobe — ˈshifəˌrōb noun ( s) Etymology: chiffonier + wardrobe : a combination of wardrobe and chest of drawers …   Useful english dictionary

  • Chiffarobe — Eine Chiffarobe, im Englischen auch „chifforobe“, „chifferobe“ oder „chiffrobe“ und andere Schreibweisen[1], ist ein Einrichtungsgegenstand, ein freistehender Kleiderschrank, meist zweiteilig: mit einem durchgehenden Hängeteil auf der einen Seite …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Chest of drawers — A chest on chest, a derivative of the simpler chest of drawers A chest of drawers, also called (especially in North American English) a dresser or a bureau, is a piece of furniture that has multiple parallel, horizontal drawers stacked one above… …   Wikipedia

  • Cabinet (furniture) — A cabinet is usually a box shaped form, either standing alone as a piece of furniture or built into or attached to a wall (such as a medicine cabinet) typically made of wood but now often made of synthetic materials, and used for storage of… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”