Skort

A field hockey player wearing a skort as part of her uniform

The term "skort" (a portmanteau of skirt and shorts) is used idiomatically in some regions. While some garments sold as culottes resemble short trousers, to be skorts they need to look like skirts. They are distinguished from trousers or shorts by a fuller cut at the bottom (hem) than at the waist.

Initially called "trouser skirts," skorts were developed to provide more freedom to do activities (such as sports, gardening, cleaning, or bike riding), and give the appearance of a skirt. At first, skorts were not deemed appropriate to be worn during any non-athletic activity.[2]

Montgomery Ward claimed in their 1959 Spring/Summer catalog to have invented the garment they called a skort. It was a short knife or accordion pleated skirt with an attached bloomer underneath. Years later, the term was applied to a pair of shorts with a flap of fabric across the front (and often the back) making the garment appear to be a skirt. In recent years, the term skort has been given to any skirt with an attached pair of shorts.

Skorts are popular in sports such as field hockey, tennis, golf, ten-pin bowling and camogie, and are often part of girls' athletic uniforms.

The first noted skort-like clothing to be worn as tennis attire was done so by the Spanish player, Lilí Álvarez, who wore a pair of culottes which had been shaped to resemble a skirt during her Wimbledon match in 1931.[2]

Women began to play golf in large numbers in the 1960s, which led to the development of the famous Leon Levin "Q" skirt or "skort", which offered the freedom of shorts and soft lines of a skirt. The article became an immediate favorite on the Ladies Professional Golf Tour. Professional golfers famously known for wearing skorts are Natalie Gulbis and Paula Creamer.

• Women and trousers
• Culottes