I've been following track and cross country since the mid 60s, but I had never heard anybody refer to what is worn during competition as a kit until a year or two ago. It was always called a uniform. Now I hear commentators constantly refer to a runner's "kit." Did something precipitate this change, or am I just out of the loop?
1977 my freshman year at Arkansas. The Irish guys referred to their uniforms as their kit.
The origin is interesting (to me). I like word origins and "kit" (unlike "uniform") isn't obvious:
Middle English: from Middle Dutch kitte ‘wooden vessel’, of unknown origin. The original sense ‘wooden box’ was later applied to other containers; the use denoting a soldier's equipment (late 18th century) probably arose from the idea of a set of articles packed in such a container. The soldiers' uniforms would also be part of their "kit."
“Kit” was not adopted instead of “uniform.” It was adopted from British/European sports. With global broadcasts, social media, and pro running, “kit” is more commonly used in America. “Uniform” is correct. It is a linguistic change, not a rule change.
I think “kit” has been the popular term in Europe for decades, and has caught on more across the pond recently.
Yup.
This has always been the terminology in England, and more recently among pretentious people in the US.
Signed, someone who has travelled.
It's not the worst thing in the world, of course, but "pretentiousness" is, in fact, the main answer to this question. "Look, I'm using a fancy word that the Europeans use." Simple.
Then again, lots of changes in language over the eons probably stem from such harmless stuff. We just weren't around for a lot of the transitions. However, it's still always annoying when people - on this thread, and others through the years - don't have the honesty to simply admit this. No, they lamely claim that the change is somehow objectively justified (as done multiple times above). They're not semi-losers for trying to sound cool, you're "mean" (or even wrong) for noting the pretentiousness (again, however harmless). BS.
But hey, let's give uniform versus kit a rest for a moment. As appropriately joked about above, "colorWAY" should be mocked by every non-loser on the planet, from now until eternity.
I guess that it's analogous to "skill set." Color/s goes to colorway. And sometime roundabout the 90s, "skills" went to "skill set." Completely dumb and unnecessary and (minorly) falsely sophisticated.
I like the term "kit" when it refers to an individual athlete's race gear. But I always use "uniform" when referring to the one outfit the whole team is wearing (hence the word uniform). That said, I think "kit" is catching on because it is such a short word and it brings a bit of Euro style to your comment.
But for me, these examples are probably typical of my usage:
"If I am racing an triathlon, it is nice to have a kit that fits well and has enough pockets for all the gels. The kit I wore last year was nice but a bit baggy."
"BYU has a good uniform but it would be even better if they had an all white version for home meets. I'd like to see a uniform like that for next year."
Nice examples. however, BYU’s uniform looks like Team Yahoo!
I like the term "kit" when it refers to an individual athlete's race gear. But I always use "uniform" when referring to the one outfit the whole team is wearing (hence the word uniform). That said, I think "kit" is catching on because it is such a short word and it brings a bit of Euro style to your comment.
But for me, these examples are probably typical of my usage:
"If I am racing an triathlon, it is nice to have a kit that fits well and has enough pockets for all the gels. The kit I wore last year was nice but a bit baggy."
"BYU has a good uniform but it would be even better if they had an all white version for home meets. I'd like to see a uniform like that for next year."
"Kit" is what you use when you are up with times and you can't use words "suit" or "outfit" or even "gear" anymore because they are too old fashioned.
I like the term "kit" when it refers to an individual athlete's race gear. But I always use "uniform" when referring to the one outfit the whole team is wearing (hence the word uniform). That said, I think "kit" is catching on because it is such a short word and it brings a bit of Euro style to your comment.
But for me, these examples are probably typical of my usage:
"If I am racing an triathlon, it is nice to have a kit that fits well and has enough pockets for all the gels. The kit I wore last year was nice but a bit baggy."
"BYU has a good uniform but it would be even better if they had an all white version for home meets. I'd like to see a uniform like that for next year."
"Kit" is what you use when you are up with times and you can't use words "suit" or "outfit" or even "gear" anymore because they are too old fashioned.
Well, since (as noted by others above) the lame transition to kit started some time ago, sounds like the cool kids are well overdue for moving on to something new.
This has always been the terminology in England, and more recently among pretentious people in the US.
Signed, someone who has travelled.
It's not the worst thing in the world, of course, but "pretentiousness" is, in fact, the main answer to this question. "Look, I'm using a fancy word that the Europeans use." Simple.
Then again, lots of changes in language over the eons probably stem from such harmless stuff. We just weren't around for a lot of the transitions. However, it's still always annoying when people - on this thread, and others through the years - don't have the honesty to simply admit this. No, they lamely claim that the change is somehow objectively justified (as done multiple times above). They're not semi-losers for trying to sound cool, you're "mean" (or even wrong) for noting the pretentiousness (again, however harmless). BS.
But hey, let's give uniform versus kit a rest for a moment. As appropriately joked about above, "colorWAY" should be mocked by every non-loser on the planet, from now until eternity.
I guess that it's analogous to "skill set." Color/s goes to colorway. And sometime roundabout the 90s, "skills" went to "skill set." Completely dumb and unnecessary and (minorly) falsely sophisticated.
By trying so hard not to sound pretentious, you're just sounding even more pretentious.😄
I've been following track and cross country since the mid 60s, but I had never heard anybody refer to what is worn during competition as a kit until a year or two ago. It was always called a uniform. Now I hear commentators constantly refer to a runner's "kit." Did something precipitate this change, or am I just out of the loop?
prob caught on more with the internet and everyone having access to everything all the time. Plus, I think some use it because it sounds cool. In the US I mean. I have been cycling for over 40yrs, never heard the term until 5-10 yrs ago. Prob from Phil or Paul.
"Kit" is often misused by Americans. It is not interchangeable with "uniform"; it is not just the vest & shorts. It is all of the gear issued to the athlete by the university/club/sponsor. And it is absolutely never "a" kit as in "John has a really nice kit".
"Kit" is often misused by Americans. It is not interchangeable with "uniform"; it is not just the vest & shorts. It is all of the gear issued to the athlete by the university/club/sponsor. And it is absolutely never "a" kit as in "John has a really nice kit".
In the UK the word has many uses, and it doesn't have a strict meaning where clothing is concerned. It certainly can apply to any uniform.
For example men and women, boys and girls will often tease someone they find attractive by shouting "Get yer kit off!" Meaning take your clothes off.
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