Jump to content

Menu

Sweater vs. Sweatshirt


Butter
 Share

Recommended Posts

Last night my daughter was cold so she said she was going to get a sweater.  She came back with a sweatshirt.  When we moved to San Antonio four years ago, we noticed that sweaters and sweatshirts are both called sweaters here.  In response to my post on FB a friend asked what the difference is.  She is not from here so I wondered if calling them both the same thing is more widespread than just here.

 

To you, what is a sweater and what is a sweatshirt?  What is the difference between them?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A sweatshirt is machine knit jersey.  It may be pullover or zip front and sometimes is fleece-lined. Hooded sweatshirts usually have pockets.

 

A sweater is knit, machine or hand, from yarn. The knit pattern often includes cables, ribbing, or other fancy needlework.  It may be pullover or cardigan style, buttons are more common than zippers.  Cardigan style sometimes have pockets, pullover style rarely do.  

 

ETA: It is the fabric the sweatshirt is made of that is knit.  Sweatshirts are made by cutting the knit fabric and sewing the pieces together.    Sweater pieces are knit to the proper shape and then assembled.  

Edited by Sherry in OH
  • Like 17
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sweaters are made with a yarn or woven fiber with a knit pattern

 

Sweatshirts are made with a fabric that is like very thick t-shirt fabric and is often fuzzy/fleece on one side. 

 

 

Two different things in the PNW but I have heard people call them all sweaters before. 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I associate sweatshirts with those that have the college logos or sports teams logos or brand logos, and is just thick material that tends to be fleeced lined.

 

Sweaters are more likely to be hand made and customized. I had plenty of sweaters as a kid that were hand made by relatives and my mom’s close friends that were customized to my sensory needs. I get to pick the yarn and the pattern and my relatives enjoy having someone to knit for that can’t fit into stuff off the racks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

After my many, many years of living in San Antonio, it is my firm belief that the natives know absolutely nothing about cold weather clothing. Lol

That is what I was thinking too. I used to live in Austin.  There is one word for snow there....snow!  A lot of natives don't know the difference between slushy, crunchy, powder, pellets, snowball snow. blizzard, white out etc. It is all just "Snow!!" even if it is truly just a faint dusting of some dry powder!  LOL

 

They don't' need the words sweater and sweatshirt.  Either will do, sweater is a broad enough term to cover both. LOL

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I can easily see "go put on a sweater" as simple instructions to put a warmer layer on. And since we don't really buy sweaters, I can see me both saying that and my kids putting on some kind of pull-over (probably fleece) even though I know the difference between sweater and sweatshirt.  I just asked my kids if they know the difference between each or if they're the same thing -- they were totally confused. I showed them a sweater and they named it correctly but sounded completely unsure. So -- I think my kids equate them as the same thing. 

Edited by xixstar
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I’ve never used them interchangeably.

 

A sweatshirt is more casual, made of a machine knit stretchy fleece fabric.

 

A sweater is probably more formal but can still be casual. It’s made of a yarn and may or may not have cables or be soft, but it’s not fleecy.

 

Oh, I have seen them used sort of interchangeably. Eddie Bauer or somewhere had what they called a shawl collar sweatshirt a couple of years ago, and MIL got me a couple. We expected them to be, based on the name, a fleecy sort of fabric, and they seemed like a nicer casual sort of garment, like suitable for going grocery shopping without looking sloppy but not what I’d wear for going out to dinner with friends ( I would easily wear my college alum sweatshirt for grocery shopping but not for dinner with friends). We were pleasantly surprised when they turned out to be a finer gauge yarn and on the nicer end of casual. Definitely suitable for dinner out with friends, even for church. I’d have called them casual sweaters, not sweatshirts.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The difference has to do with the fabric.  Both are typically made from knit fabric, but  the type of knit fabric is quite different.

 

I have heard the terms used interchangeably.  I don't do it myself.

 

If you really want to drive me nuts, you'll call say your lacy knit sweater is "crochet" -- you might put that on the sales tag, or the sign in the store, or in the print ad.  If you do, I will judge you mercilessly.  Don't write ad copy using fancy words you don't know the meaning of!  

Edited by GailV
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I differentiate the same way people here have.  Yarn vs. cloth seems pretty obvious to me.

 

I will never call sweaters and sweatshirts all sweaters.  I maintain they are two different things even if people from San Antonio call them all sweaters and look at you blankly if you say sweatshirt.

Edited by Butter
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Fleece is where it's at, at least for me.  :laugh:  I don't care for anything else. It's soft, warm and dries really quickly. I just call it "my cozy fleecy." 

 

My newest discovery is fleece lined pants. They are the BEST in cold weather.

Edited by wintermom
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I differentiate the way most pps have. However, my mom calls every pullover top a sweater, no matter what it is made of or the length of sleeves. She also calls cardigans sweaters. Anything else that buttons up, she calls a shirt. 

 

So she calls a t-shirt or a tank top a "sweater"? That would take me by surprise!

 

Re: the bolded. I call cardigans sweaters. I thought everyone did. Cardigan sweaters are a subset of sweaters, with pullover sweaters being the other major type.

 

After typing the word sweater that many times, it is starting to look weird to me. Sweater, sweater, sweater.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

To add a complication: sweatshirt in the UK means the cloth garment described by pps.  The knitted garment can be a sweater or a jumper here.  The garment referred to in the US as a jumper is a pinafore dress here.

 

Laura, is there a difference between a sweater and a jumper, or are the terms interchangeable? I thought they were always called jumpers in the UK.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sweatshirts are generally jersey material and can be washed easily and get softer over time.  They're also always casual, and look more like something you'd hang around in on a Saturday afternoon or exercise in. 

 

Sweaters are a type of knitwear that can be casual or dressy and can also keep you warmer than sweatshirts (if you get ones with wool), and are generally a little more stylish.  You usually have to take more care in washing them. 

 

I prefer a warm cozy cardigan sweater over a sweatshirt.  

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

To me a sweater is knit, as in, can be unraveled.  A sweatshirt is thicker t-shirt type material.  Both are pullover, neither have hoods.  To me a "hoodie" is a hooded sweatshirt.  If it zips it's a jacket, unless it's knit like a sweater, then that's weird and it should have buttons and be called a cardigan.  Egad where did this come from??    :lol:   

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here we call them jumpers. if it is a woollen one we call it a woollen jumper. if it is knitted and open at the front we call it a cardegen.  if it is a thin fleecy it might be called a top. if it has a hood it might be called a hoodie, but they are all jumpers.

 

 

 no clothing is a sweater here. it took me a while to work out what DH was on about when I first met him and he was referring to his sweater. I had a visual image of some very sweaty athletic  top????

 

 the  dress you guys call a jumper is called a  is called a pinafore here.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sweaters are sweaters and sweatshirts are sweatshirts.

 

I hope I am making myself perfectly clear. :laugh:

 

I have never heard the terms used interchangeably.

 

Yep.   :iagree:

 

A sweatshirt is fleece, can be a pullover with a hood (aka a hoodie), or a pullover without a hood.

I know some people call a hooded fleece jacket a hoodie too, but to me that's a sweat jacket.  If it has a full zipper, it's not a hoodie to me.

 

A sweater is made out of yarn and has an obvious knit.  Could be a cardigan (buttons or open in the front) or a pullover.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

After my many, many years of living in San Antonio, it is my firm belief that the natives know absolutely nothing about cold weather clothing. Lol

 

My children were born in San Antonio.  My oldest was born in November.  She was gifted a SNOW SUIT in a newborn size by a native.  I mean, I did once see a few snow flakes fall from the sky, but no actual snow.  

 

I saw people wearing parkas when it was legitimately 70 degrees.  Parkas!  My kids at toddler ages had light jackets, but I certainly didn't ever have them wear a coat.  Heck, we went to the San Antonio zoo every week in the winter and had it pretty much entirely to ourselves if it was under that 70 degree threshold.  My oldest would strip to her diaper in the water features in the kid area.  I'm pretty sure if the people of San Antonio weren't the most laid back, child friendly people in the world, I would have been reported to CPS.  

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hey, should we muddy the waters and throw in polar fleece as well? What do you call something like this --

 

https://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/78994?feat=907-GN3&page=trail-model-fleece-pullover&csp=f

 

Is that a sweatshirt too or do you call it something else? We call it a "fleece" or "fleece jacket" if it has a zippered front.

 

I would call that a fleece, but I would be more likely to refer to it as a jacket than as a sweater.  Sweaters are knit.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hey, should we muddy the waters and throw in polar fleece as well? What do you call something like this --

 

https://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/78994?feat=907-GN3&page=trail-model-fleece-pullover&csp=f

 

Is that a sweatshirt too or do you call it something else? We call it a "fleece" or "fleece jacket" if it has a zippered front.

 

I'd call it a fleece or fleece pullover.  If it it had a full zipper, a fleece jacket.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

So she calls a t-shirt or a tank top a "sweater"? That would take me by surprise!

 

Re: the bolded. I call cardigans sweaters. I thought everyone did. Cardigan sweaters are a subset of sweaters, with pullover sweaters being the other major type.

 

After typing the word sweater that many times, it is starting to look weird to me. Sweater, sweater, sweater.

Oh, I call cardigans sweaters too. I was just pointing out that even though it isn't a pullover, my mom still calls it a sweater as well. 

 

Actually, she calls t-shirts t-shirts. I forgot about those. But any other women's pullover, she calls a sweater. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is my pet peeve. To me a sweater is a sweater and a sweatshirt is a sweatshirt and shouldn't be interchangeable. My husband calls everything a sweater and it bugs me.

This is us too... I am born and raised PNW and my husband is from Arizona... I wonder if that has something to do with it [emoji848]

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Oh, I call cardigans sweaters too. I was just pointing out that even though it isn't a pullover, my mom still calls it a sweater as well. 

 

Actually, she calls t-shirts t-shirts. I forgot about those. But any other women's pullover, she calls a sweater. 

 

She's your mom. She doesn't have to make sense. At least, that's what I tell my son*. :lol:

 

*A son BTW who once told me he couldn't imagine any article of clothing fancier than a plaid flannel shirt. I have thus no intention of asking his position on the sweatshirt/sweater controversy.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hey, should we muddy the waters and throw in polar fleece as well? What do you call something like this --

 

https://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/78994?feat=907-GN3&page=trail-model-fleece-pullover&csp=f

 

Is that a sweatshirt too or do you call it something else? We call it a "fleece" or "fleece jacket" if it has a zippered front.

 

Lol!

 

I think of a sweatshirt and a fleece as two different things and usually differentiate.  I'll tell my kids "Go grab a sweatshirt or fleece," but I might just say sweatshirt and be satisfied if they grab a fleece.  I think I do the same thing with "jacket", but we don't have many jackets that aren't fleeces.  We have sweatshirts and fleeces, and then we have legit COATS.

 

Because we use them for the same purpose, it doesn't really matter.  But they ARE different things.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

sweaters are knitted or crocheted, by hand or machine.

sweatshirts are made from a particular type of a specific very fine-gauge knit fabric.  generally have a fleecy side and a smooth-side. 

 

either can be pullover or cardigan/button up style.

 

I admit being really irked yesterday as I was doing a search for a fleece tunic - and the number of sweatshirts or t-shirt-material items that came up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm pretty sure if the people of San Antonio weren't the most laid back, child friendly people in the world, I would have been reported to CPS.  

 

This is true.  My babies used to wear just diapers a lot in MD and VA and people seriously would say I was a bad mom and my kids could be taken away (note: this was in the summer when it was hot).  Here in San Antonio/Texas, people are just kind of chill.  Last night we went a couple hours north to a walk-through Bethlehem thing.  I totally forgot to bring our coats (we were in sweatshirts and long sleeve shirts) so it got kind of cold waiting in line for two hours in 47 degree weather.  And my youngest was wearing sandals.  Now, at home, I had told him to wear shoes and socks.  My husband had told him to wear shoes and socks.  We got out of the van in Burnet and he had on sandals.  He said, "It's okay. I can handle it."  The people in line behind us, an older couple, commented on his shoe choice. I shrugged and said we told him to wear shoes and socks and this is what he picked.  They laughed and said something about kids being silly and we went on chatting about other stuff (because Texans are also incredibly friendly).  I doubt it would've gone quite that way where I grew up.

 

My cousin pretty much said I was lying about people in San Antonio calling sweatshirts and sweaters all sweaters.  His proof is he's lived in Texas most of his life and never heard someone say that.  He's always lived more north in Texas (plus Brownsville) and never in San Antonio.  I find it odd, though, that he would indicate I made it up.  I mean, what would even be the point of making something like that up?  Especially when my own daughter has gotten so used to everyone else her age referring to sweatshirts as sweaters and started saying it as well.  But then my cousin is rather... negative... about everything anyway so I guess I should've expected it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...