Definition of "gown" []

• A long loose flowing garment, such as a robe or nightgown. (noun)
• A long, usually formal dress for a woman. (noun)
• A robe or smock worn in operating rooms and other parts of hospitals as a guard against contamination. (noun)
• A distinctive outer robe worn on ceremonial occasions, as by scholars or clerics. (noun)
• The faculty and student body of a university: perfect accord between town and gown. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "After this she seems shaken, asks to be at least allowed to hear mass, adding, "I won't say but if you were to give me a gown such as the daughters of the burghers wear, a very _long gown_.""
• "That woman there, with the black chenille net and lilac muslin gown, is a perfect maniac … there is a little girl of sixteen, her features distorted and her whole frame quivering with frenzied agitation; now she beats the wooden planks and bites everything within her reach! back"
• "That said, he does think the gown is a little too short and Nina thinks the fabric choice looks "inexpensive.""