Coveralls vs overalls vs bodysuits

Brian G Turner

Brian G Turner

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So I have a future setting, and I see my characters in loose-fitting all-purpose clothing. Nothing fancy or hard wearing, just cheap and accessible.

I originally went with the word "overalls", but I'm not sure if this word translates well in the USA?

Alternatively I could use "coveralls", but I see that as a more work-specific item of clothing.

I could, of course, use "bodysuit", but too much sci-fi TV has made me picture body-hugging clothing with no room for pockets.

So my question is, am I fine to use "overalls" for an American/International audience, or for a SF setting should I just go for "bodysuit" and briefly describe them as loose-fitting, so as to avoid unnecessary confusion?

Thoughts, please. :)
 
I think originally Overalls were the same as Dungarees , with a bib . Coveralls are the same as boiler-suits , lose all over clothing. Bodysuits are the same as jump suits. I have not been studying my work wear catalogue just lately, but I think the word coveralls and overalls are now interchangeable. But to me bodysuit is too close to body bag.
 
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All of my working life I've worn overalls/coveralls/boiler suits. They're all basically the same thing.
 
So the future is again everyone in onesies of some kind. So not much fashion and if you spill red wine on it, you are stuffed ;) :)

Seriously. problem I have with overalls/coveralls is that they are supposed to be over some other clothes to protect them.

Bodysuit as you suggest, or Jumpsuit as Finch suggests (actually the definition of jumpsuit seems to fit your ideas better.) Unitard?
 
I've always wondered if the designers of futuristic one-piece wear ever thought of practicalities -- spillages, as VB has pointed out or kneeling in something mucky. That's fine if it's workwear and it doesn't matter that the thing is dirty, because you'll strip it off come the end of your shift and if it's mucky work, nobody is going to care if you wear it again next day. But for clothes worn during all waking hours? Really? Unless the wearers and the rest of the population is really unfastidious, the one-pieces will be in the wash every other wear, so you've got to factor in extra resources for washing and drying. A thin shirt and a pair of trousers, only one of which is likely to be dirty at any one time, would surely be more economical on both counts.

And don't get me started on going to the loo, particularly for women -- unfastening the bib and dropping the trousers of dungarees is one thing; struggling out of and afterwards back into the arms of a one-piece, loose or not, every time you want a pee is something very different. Not to mention having the back of your one-piece ending up on the toilet floor if you're not careful. And to make things easier for men at least, are you planning to have a back-door flap like old fashioned long johns? (Modern long johns are made in two pieces for a reason.)
 
I'm not a fan of all in one body wear, not something I'd wear, never a fan of dungarees or the jumpsuit. As for onesies I always think why are adults wearing baby grows?

I think boiler suit would work better than overall or coverall.
 
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nixie said:
As for onesies I always think why are adults wearing baby grows?
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They can wear that or whatever they want in the comfort of their own homes, but when you see them down at big Tesco's stumbling in, in essentially bedclothes - i.e. some lurid onesie, to get a pack of fags, some milk and some alcohol, it does make me wonder about their state of mind :)
 
Venusian Broon said:
They can wear that or whatever they want in the comfort of their own homes, but when you see them down at big Tesco's stumbling in, in essentially bedclothes - i.e. some lurid onesie, to get a pack of fags, some milk and some alcohol, it does make me wonder about their state of mind :)
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That's basically what I was thinking. Besides being impractical, no-one would want to be found dead in a onesie. Now or in the future.
 
Okay, for context think utilitarian society. :)

A quick search suggests that Winston in 1984 wears overalls - I'm just not sure that word translates well in America.

Jumpsuit - that just makes me think of something specific, like a pilot or parachutist would need to wear. :)
 
Brian G Turner said:
Jumpsuit - that just makes me think of something specific, like a pilot or parachutist would need to wear. :)
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Just because that's where it came from. It's definition has changed over the years. You can have characters wearing bomber jackets, but they aren't part of a crew of a Lancaster or B-17 :)
 
In my near future world, I have all of my residents wearing government supplied, poly-paper 'coveralls.'

Initially, I called them 'jumpsuits,' and considered 'overalls,' and I live here... but, as I tried to look for info for my jumpsuits or overalls to give them a more precise description, I had great difficulty finding what I needed. Once I shifted to 'coverall,' like magic, oodles of info. Jumpsuits, formally, apply to aviation or paratrooper (firefighter) wear, repurposed as clothing. Overalls in the U.S. are the 'bib' design. A romper is that coverall with the legs and arms shortened. Coveralls come in different fits. Some are meant to be worn over clothing, others are meant to be worn as the sole piece of clothing so tend to be fitted.

So, I chose coverall simply because it seems to be the industry standard. Past that, I only use the word 'coverall' in narration, but, have the characters use other nicknames for them.

(this also extended to the closure... realizing, I could not use 'Ziploc' ®, and nothing else described them until I found some technical design papers which described them as 'zip-locking closures.' I also couldn't use the widely known name of 'Tyvek' ®, so, the appendix description is 'flash-spun high-density polyethylene,' in MSS narration, I use 'poly-paper')

K2
 
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I vote for making up your own word.

When you say "your characters" what are they? Scientists? The crew of a space ship? Maintenance workers at a mall? Do they come from a variety of professions and life-styles? Before the word, there should be the reason.

Why do they all wear the same thing? Is it voluntary? A work uniform? Mandated by the government or by our alien conquerors?

And why is it one-piece? I agree with Venusian Broon here. Not spills only, but tears or any other damage either unslightly or pragmatic. In every case, the entire kit has to be replaced. Wear shirts and pants, and you need only replace the one. That goes even for mandated clothing--just look at the soldiers of any army.
 
Another vote for making up your own. Maybe something like zipsuits or snapsuits depending on closure features? In my Distaff short story, my off-world explorers use skyshells, for instance.

Foxbat said:
Why not make up your own name if it's set in the future? If it's something that everybody wears, you could call it Omnisuit (which folk naturally shorten to O suit).
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I quite like this, but please don't shorten to O suit unless your characters are having a really good time wearing them! :LOL:
 
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