Why a "Pair of Pants" ?

Why do we say a "pair of pants" when there is only one of them?

Nice try !

But incorrect.

A shirt or blouse has two holes; but is not a "pair of".

to confuse foreign students?

makes me want to cut a spectacles with a scissors

"A few words, though singular in nature, are made of paired items and generally treated as plural: scissors, pants, trousers, glasses, pliers, tongs, tweezers, and the like. Many are often used with the word pair as in pair of pants or pair of scissors."

@ FirebrandX... originally "pants" consisted if two items, one outer and one inner garment. Thus the plural. Has nothing to do with the two legs !

me and robin get everything in pairs, especially cat fud.

scissors started out as one knife with a single cutting edge, called a scissor

then someone got the idea to attach 2 scissors with a screw and voila, a pair of scissors

People think the plural refers to the fact that there are two legs on the garment. In fact, the plural refers to the fact that the garmet was always accompanied by another similar garment worn underneath.

The term "pair pf pants" refers to the outer garment and the under garment.

They get their name from an old italian clown named Pantalone who, like all clowns back then, wore tights and was actually funny.

Don't believe everything you read FirebrandX. Your version is an "old wives tale" !

Because calling them butt and leg covers with pockets is simply too long and probably not a good marketing strategy.

this has been very educational! i thought initially it had to do with accomodating both buttcheeks..... NOT!!

Did anyone ever get the Golden Pantaloons in that old game, Baldur's Gate?

no, but leisure suit larry definitely got his pants off

http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-pai1.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pair_of_pants_(mathematics)

I think my first link clarifies the issue.

"such garments, whether underwear or outerwear, were indeed made in two parts, one for each leg"