Expensive or showy clothing and decorations, especially those worn to look impressive.
From 'fine' (of high quality) plus the suffix '-ery' (meaning place of or collection of). The suffix '-ery' evolved from Old French and Latin '-erie', often indicating a collection or place associated with something.
The suffix '-ery' in 'finery' is doing heavy lifting—it transforms the adjective 'fine' into a noun meaning fancy clothing collections, and it does the same work in 'drapery,' 'pottery,' and 'jewelry,' making it one of English's most productive noun-building tools.
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