bikini

From French bikini, named after the place name Bikini, from English Bikini, the name of the atoll where the United States tested nuclear weapons in July 1946; it was reckoned that the bathing suit would cause as much excitement as a nuclear bomb. This name was originally from German Bikini, the colonial name of the atoll as part of German New Guinea, and this was derived from Marshallese Pikinni.

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /bɪˈkiː.ni/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /bɪˈki.ni/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːni
• Homophone: Bikini

bikini (plural bikinis)

2. A brief two-piece bathing suit worn by women, especially one that exposes the midriff and navel.

   Synonym: two-piece

   • 1950 October 2, “In the Swim”, in Time:

     Cole has little but scorn for France's famed Bikini bathing suits. Explains he: " French girls, have short legs. Swimsuits have to be hiked up at the sides to make their legs look longer. "

3. A brief bathing suit worn by men.
   • 2004, Cathy Crimmons, How the Homosexuals Saved Civilization, page 202:

     We high-schoolers didn't understand why death came in the form of a gorgeous young man with muscles in a skimpy bikini.

4. Brief underpants or trousers that reach to the hips rather than the waist.
   • 1982, Ruth Tolman, Selling Men’s Fashion, page 124:

     Boxer shorts, knitted briefs, and bikinis are the most popular styles in shorts, formerly called “drawers.”

• microkini
• minikini
• monokini
• trikini
• burqini

• → Norwegian Bokmål: bikini

• swim briefs

From English bikini.

• Hyphenation: bi‧ki‧ni

bikini

1. a monokini; the lower part of a bikini
2. a bikini; a two-piece

Borrowed from French bikini.

• IPA^(key): /biˈki.ni/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: bi‧ki‧ni
• Rhymes: -ini

bikini m (plural bikini's, diminutive bikinietje n)

1. bikini

• “bikini” in Woordenlijst Nederlandse Taal – Officiële Spelling, Nederlandse Taalunie. [the official spelling word list for the Dutch language]

• IPA^(key): /ˈbikini/, [ˈbik̟ini]
• Rhymes: -ikini
• Syllabification^(key): bi‧ki‧ni
• Hyphenation^(key): bi‧ki‧ni

bikini

1. (only in compounds) nominative singular of bikinit

Named after the place name Bikini, from Bikini, the name of the atoll where the United States tested nuclear weapons in July 1946; it was reckoned that the bathing suit would cause as much excitement as an atom bomb. This name was originally from German Bikini, the colonial name of the atoll as part of German New Guinea, and this was derived from Marshallese Pikinni.

• IPA^(key): /bi.ki.ni/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Audio (Switzerland (Valais)):

  (file)

• Audio (France (Vosges)):

  (file)

• Audio (France (Saint-Étienne)):

  (file)

bikini m (plural bikinis)

1. bikini

• → Dutch: bikini
• → English: bikini
  • → Norwegian Bokmål: bikini
• → German: Bikini
• → Portuguese: biquíni
• → Spanish: biquini

• “bikini”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Borrowed from French bikini.

• IPA^(key): /biˈkini/
• Hyphenation: bi‧ki‧ni

bikini (plural bikini-bikini)

1. bikini

   Synonym: amplek

• “bikini”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016

• bichini

Borrowed from French bikini.

• IPA^(key): /biˈki.ni/
• Rhymes: -ini
• Hyphenation: bi‧kì‧ni

bikini m (invariable)

1. bikini

   Synonym: due pezzi

• costume da bagno

bikini

1. Rōmaji transcription of ビキニ

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

bikini m (plural bikinis)

1. (Jersey) bikini

bikini m (definite singular bikinien, indefinite plural bikinier, definite plural bikiniene)

1. bikini

bikini m (plural bikinien)

1. bikini

Unadapted borrowing from English bikini, from French bikini. First attested in 1959.

• IPA^(key): /biˈki.ɲi/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iɲi
• Syllabification: bi‧ki‧ni

bikini n (indeclinable)

1. bikini

   Coordinate term: monokini

• bikini in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• bikini in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Unadapted borrowing from English bikini.

bikini m (plural bikinis)

1. unadapted form of biquíni

Borrowed from French bikini.

bikini n (uncountable)

1. bikini

Borrowed from English bikini.

• IPA^(key): /bǐkiːni/
• Hyphenation: bi‧ki‧ni

bìkīni m inan (Cyrillic spelling бѝкӣни)

1. bikini

• “bikini”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2025

• biquini

Borrowed from English bikini. For the sandwich, see more at Catalan biquini.

• IPA^(key): /biˈkini/ [biˈki.ni]

• Audio (Venezuela):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ini
• Syllabification: bi‧ki‧ni

bikini m (plural bikinis)

1. bikini
2. (Catalonia) ham and cheese sandwich

   Synonyms: cubano, mixto

   • 2017 April 10, Aurora Segura, “¿Por qué lo llamas ‘bikini’ cuando quieres decir ‘mixto’?”, in La Vanguardia‎^[1]:

     Se sorprenden los catalanes cuando les miran con expresión rara al pedir un “bikini” en cualquier bar o cafetería fuera de la comunidad.

     Catalans are surprised when they get strange looks after asking for a "bikini" in any bar or cafeteria outside the autonomous community.

• “bikini”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024

Borrowed from English bikini.

• Audio (Kenya):

  (file)

bikini class IX (plural bikini class X)

1. bikini

Borrowed from French bikini.

• IPA^(key): /bɪˈkiːnɪ/
• Rhymes: -iːnɪ

bikini c

1. bikini

• bikini in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• bikini in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)

Borrowed from English bikini, borrowed from French bikini, from Bikini, borrowed from English Bikini, borrowed from German Bikini, borrowed from Marshallese Pikinni, from pik + ni.

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /biˈkini/ [bɪˈxiː.n̪ɪ]
• Rhymes: -ini
• Syllabification: bi‧ki‧ni

bikini (Baybayin spelling ᜊᜒᜃᜒᜈᜒ)

1. bikini

• “bikini”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018

Borrowed from English bikini.

• IPA^(key): [biˈcini]

bikini (definite accusative bikiniyi, plural bikiniler)

1. bikini

• mayokini
• mayo