polonaise, in clothing, a coatlike dress, originally worn by Polish women, that was extremely popular in the 1770s and 1780s in western Europe and North America. It consisted of a fitted bodice with a full skirt, draped in front from the waist and caught up on either side at the back, so that it fell in three large loops.
The underskirt, or petticoat, which showed prominently, was elaborately decorated, quilted, or embroidered. In the 19th century the polonaise gave its name to a short overcoat, usually fur-trimmed, worn by men and, somewhat later, by women.