# What is the purpose of underwear?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-purpose-of-underwear/41969>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [November 20, 2000, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-purpose-of-underwear/41969 "2000-11-20T16:05:31Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\
**Post date:** [November 20, 2000, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-purpose-of-underwear/41969/21 "2000-11-20T23:54:47Z")

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Ike: You sucked me in with your “Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison” post. I was trying frantically to remember a pantsless Bob Mitchum scene before I figured out I was a dupe. After all, I’ve probably seen the movie 20 times and I would have remembered seeing Mitchum’s butt!

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**Author:** ![Major\_Feelgud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3be4f8/32.png) [@Major\_Feelgud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Major_Feelgud)\
**Post date:** [November 21, 2000, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-purpose-of-underwear/41969/22 "2000-11-21T11:13:15Z")

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The reason I wear underpants is that if I pick my butt and I’m not wearing any, I get crap on my pants. Are you sorry you asked?

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**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\
**Post date:** [November 21, 2000, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-purpose-of-underwear/41969/23 "2000-11-21T13:39:50Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> Can you say “zipper”?

My husband learned something in grade school that he will never, EVER forget. He learned to tuck, THEN zip, not the other way around. His mom had to come down to the school and unzip him.

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**Author:** ![lee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lee/32/7455_2.png) [@lee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lee)\
**Post date:** [November 21, 2000, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-purpose-of-underwear/41969/24 "2000-11-21T14:23:30Z")

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I wear all cotton panties and they certainly do have a purpose. cotton wicks for women’s panites as it does for men’s uunder shirts.

Men’s undershirts are so that you cannot see the nipples and the chest hair under the outershirt. I think chesthair poking through a dress shirt is not a pretty sight.

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