Breeks is the Scots term for

trousers Trousers (British English), slacks, or pants ( American, Canadian and Australian English) are an item of clothing worn from the waist to anywhere between the knees and the ankles, covering both legs separately (rather than with cloth extending ...

breeches Breeches ( ) are an article of clothing covering the body from the waist down, with separate coverings for each leg, usually stopping just below the knee, though in some cases reaching to the ankles. Formerly a standard item of Western men's ...

. It is also used in

Northumbrian English Northumbrian dialect or Northumbrian English is any one of several traditional English language varieties, English dialects spoken in the historic counties of Northumberland and County Durham. The term ''Northumbrian'' can refer to the region ...

. From this it might be inferred that breeches and breeks relate to the

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

references to the ''

braccae (or ) is the Latin term for "trousers", and in this context is today used to refer to a style of trousers made from wool. According to the Romans, this style of clothing originated from the Gauls. were typically made with a drawstring, and ...

'' that were worn by the ancient

Celt The Celts ( , see Names of the Celts#Pronunciation, pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples ( ) were a collection of Indo-European languages, Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient Indo-European people, reached the apoge ...

s, but the Oxford English Dictionary (also online) gives the etymology as "Common Germanic", compare modern Dutch ''broek'', meaning trouser. Outside Scotland the term breeks is often used to refer to breeches, a trouser similar to

plus fours Plus fours are breeches or trousers that extend four inches (10 cm) below the knee (and thus four inches longer than traditional Knickerbockers (clothing), knickerbockers, hence the name). Knickerbockers have been traditionally associated ...

, especially when worn in Scotland and engaging in

field sports Field sports are outdoor sports that take place in the wilderness or sparsely populated rural areas, where there are vast areas of uninhabited greenfields. The term specifically refers to activities that mandate sufficiently large open spaces ...

such as

deer stalking Deer stalking, or simply stalking, is a British term for the stealthy pursuit of deer on foot to hunt for venison, for leisure, as trophies, or to control their numbers as part of wildlife management, just as with rabbiting and boar hunting. D ...

, and the activities of taking

pheasant Pheasants ( ) are birds of several genera within the family Phasianidae in the order Galliformes. Although they can be found all over the world in introduced (and captive) populations, the pheasant genera's native range is restricted to Eura ...

duck Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family (biology), family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and goose, geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfam ...

partridge A partridge is a medium-sized Galliformes, galliform bird in any of several genera, with a wide Indigenous (ecology), native distribution throughout parts of Europe, Asia and Africa. Several species have been introduced to the Americas. They ar ...

and other game birds. Whilst breeks are a neater, trimmer fit, plus twos are slightly wider with an extra 2 inches of material to fold over the knee, and plus fours a further 4 inches of material (and a wider, baggier fit).

References

Trousers and shorts Scottish clothing Hunting and shooting in Scotland Scots language {{Clothing-stub