A close-fitting strapless or sleeveless top typically worn as lingerie or formal wear, often with boning or structure to support and shape the chest.
From French 'bustier,' derived from 'buste' (bust, chest), ultimately from Italian 'busto' (torso, statue); entered English fashion vocabulary in the mid-20th century as French fashion terminology.
The bustier became iconic in 1980s-90s fashion partly through Madonna's cone-bra designs, but the garment itself goes back centuries as understructure—showing how fashion recycles and reinterprets function as art.
The term references a garment and body type descriptor. While 'bustier' itself is morphologically neutral (comparative form), it frequently appears in gendered contexts emphasizing female bodily attributes for aesthetic judgment, contributing to the sexualization of women's bodies in commerce and media.
Use descriptively when discussing garment construction or fit without commentary on the wearer's body as an object of evaluation. Center the garment's function, not the body's appearance.
["high-bust-line garment","fuller-coverage bustline"]
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