![Patch pocket with topstitching and bar tacking on the back of a pair of blue jeans.](/Images/godic/202501/04/Jeans_pocket_back3746.jpg")
![Pockets hang from belts as 15th-century peasants thresh siligo wheat in a Tacuinum Sanitatis](/Images/godic/202501/04/Tacuinum_Sanitatis-threshing3746.jpg")
![18th-century woman's hanging pocket](/Images/godic/202501/04/Woman's_Pockets_LACMA_M.59.21.1a-b3747.jpg")
![](/Images/godic/202501/04/Patch_pocket3747.png")
A pocket is a bag- or envelope-like receptacle either fastened to or inserted in an article of clothing to hold small items. Pockets may also be attached to luggage, backpacks, and similar items. In older usage, a pocket was a separate small bag or pouch.