Jacket   Jacket A jacket is a type of sleeved hip- or waist-length garment for the upper body. For clothing older than the mid-nineteenth century, a distinction is often maintained with a coat, but in many instances the terms are now interchangeable. A jacket is generally shorter, ending just below the waist, and often lighter. Some jackets are fashionable, while others serve as protective clothing. The term comes from the French jaquette, which means either a man's morning coat or the jacket of a lady's suit. It is also used to refer to the choli or ravika, an upper-body garment worn with the sari by women on the Indian subcontinent.