Bra

A bra (/brɑː/) or brassiere (/brəˈzɪər/) is a form-fitting undergarment designed to support a woman's breasts. Swimsuits, camisoles and backless dresses may be made with built-in support.

Bras are complex garments made of many parts. Most come in 36 sizes; standards and methods of measurement vary widely and up to 85 percent of women may be wearing the wrong size. The world's best-selling bra, as of 2005, was said to be the full-cup "Doreen" by Triumph International in size 36D.

The term brassiere was used by the Evening Herald in Syracuse, New York, in 1893. It gained wider acceptance in 1904 when the DeBevoise Company used it in their advertising copy—although the word is actually Norman French for a child's undershirt. In French, it is called a soutien-gorge (literally, "throat-supporter"). It and other early versions resembled a camisole stiffened with boning.

Vogue magazine first used the term brassiere in 1907, and by 1911 the word had made its way into the Oxford English Dictionary. On 3 November 1914, the newly formed U.S. patent category for "brassieres" was inaugurated with the first patent issued to Mary Phelps Jacob. In the 1930s brassiere was gradually shortened to bra.

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