1. [N. Amer, Austral] A man's sleeveless garment worn underneath a coat
   "He completed his formal attire with a silk vest";
   - waistcoat [Brit]
    
2. [Brit] A collarless undergarment for the upper part of the body
   "He wore a white cotton vest beneath his dress shirt";
   - singlet [Brit], undershirt [N. Amer], undervest [Brit]
    
3. A protective sleeveless garment
   "The construction worker wore a high-visibility safety vest"; "a bullet-proof vest"

1. Provide with power and authority
   "They vested the council with special rights";
   - invest, enthrone
    
2. Place (authority, property, or rights) in the control of a person or group of persons
   "She vested her vast fortune in her two sons"
    
3. Become legally vested
   "The property vests in the trustees"
    
4. Clothe formally; especially in ecclesiastical robes
   "The priest was vested for the ceremony";
   - robe
    
5. Clothe oneself in ecclesiastical garments
   "The bishop vested before the mass"

Derived forms: vests, vesting, vested

Type of: apparel [archaic], change hands, change owners, clothe, dress, dress up, enclothe [rare], fit out, garb, garment, give, habilitate [archaic], instal [Brit], install, raiment [archaic], tog [informal], undergarment, unmentionable

Antonym: disinvest

Part of: three-piece suit

Encyclopedia: Vest, KY