coatroom

IPA/ˈkəʊtruːm/
IPA/ˈkəʊtruːm/

coatroom — noun

1. a small room near the entrance of a theater, restaurant, museum, or similar publ

1.nounB2
Definition

a small room near the entrance of a theater, restaurant, museum, or similar public place, where visitors hand over their coats, umbrellas, or bags to a staff member and pick them up again when they leave.

Example

Paloma checked her wool coat and umbrella at the coatroom before the opera began.

check + something + at the coatroom (typical verb pattern)

The museum coatroom was packed with heavy winter jackets and dripping umbrellas that snowy afternoon.

describing typical contents of a coatroom

Common collocations
  • check at the coatroom
  • leave in the coatroom
  • coatroom attendant
  • coatroom ticket
Synonyms
  • cloakroom

    British English equivalent; in American English 'cloakroom' can also mean a toilet

  • checkroom

    American English; emphasizes the act of checking items in

Grammar Patterns

check + something + in the coatroom

leave + something + in the coatroom

Usage Note

Mainly American English; British English usually uses 'cloakroom' for the same room. Often staffed, with a numbered ticket exchanged for the stored item.

Common Mistakes

I went to the coatroom to wash my hands.
I went to the restroom to wash my hands.
a coatroom is for storing coats and bags, not a bathroom.
She bought a new coatroom at the mall.
She bought a new coat at the mall.
coatroom names the room, not the garment.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

These three words all refer to a room in a public building where visitors temporarily leave coats and bags, but they differ by region and by what is implied. 'Coatroom' is the standard American English term and is neutral and descriptive, often used in theaters, museums, and restaurants. 'Checkroom' is also American and stresses the procedure: you check an item in and receive a ticket for it. 'Cloakroom' is the standard British English equivalent for the same kind of storage room, but in American English 'cloakroom' is more often used as a polite word for a public toilet, which can confuse readers across varieties. For example, an American visitor told to 'leave your bag in the cloakroom' in London should expect a coat-storage area, not a restroom.

coatroom ↗cloakroom ↗checkroom ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • coatroom attendant
  • coatroom ticket
  • coatroom counter

Phrases

  • check something at the coatroom
  • leave something in the coatroom
  • pick something up from the coatroom

Prepositions

  • in the coatroom
  • at the coatroom
  • from the coatroom

Etymology

Old EnglishOld FrenchMiddle EnglishAmerican English

Formed in American English in the nineteenth century by simply joining 'coat' (an outer garment, from Old French 'cote') and 'room' (a space inside a building, from Old English 'rum'). The compound originally named any small room set aside in a public building for storing visitors' outdoor clothing, and the meaning has stayed close to that practical, descriptive sense.