dress
an outer garment for women and girls, consisting of bodice and skirt in one piece.
clothing; apparel; garb: The dress of the 18th century was colorful.
formal attire.
a particular form of appearance; guise.
outer covering, as the plumage of birds.
of or for a dress or dresses.
of or for a formal occasion.
requiring formal dress.
to put clothing upon.
to put formal or evening clothes on.
to trim; ornament; adorn: to dress a store window; to dress a Christmas tree.
to design clothing for or sell clothes to.
to comb out and do up (hair).
to cut up, trim, and remove the skin, feathers, viscera, etc., from (an animal, meat, fowl, or flesh of a fowl) for market or for cooking (often followed by out when referring to a large animal): We dressed three chickens for the dinner. He dressed out the deer when he got back to camp.
to prepare (skins, fabrics, timber, stone, ore, etc.) by special processes.
to apply medication or a dressing to (a wound or sore).
to make straight; bring (troops) into line:to dress ranks.
to make (stone, wood, or other building material) smooth.
to cultivate (land, fields, etc.).
Theater. to arrange (a stage) by effective placement of properties, scenery, actors, etc.
to ornament (a vessel) with ensigns, house flags, code flags, etc.: The bark was dressed with masthead flags only.
Angling.
to prepare or bait (a fishhook) for use.
to prepare (bait, especially an artificial fly) for use.
Printing. to fit (furniture) around and between pages in a chase prior to locking it up.
to supply with accessories, optional features, etc.: to have one's new car fully dressed.
to clothe or attire oneself; put on one's clothes: Wake up and dress, now!
to put on or wear formal or fancy clothes: to dress for dinner.
to come into line, as troops.
to align oneself with the next soldier, marcher, dancer, etc., in line.
dress down,
to reprimand; scold.
to thrash; beat.
to dress informally or less formally: to dress down for the shipboard luau.
dress up,
to put on one's best or fanciest clothing; dress relatively formally: They were dressed up for the Easter parade.
to dress in costume or in another person's clothes: to dress up in Victorian clothing; to dress up as Marie Antoinette.
to embellish or disguise, especially in order to make more appealing or acceptable: to dress up the facts with colorful details.
Idioms about dress
dress ship,
to decorate a ship by hoisting lines of flags running its full length.
U.S. Navy. to display the national ensigns at each masthead and a larger ensign on the flagstaff.
Origin of dress
1synonym study For dress
Other words for dress
Other words from dress
- half-dressed, adjective
- outdress, verb (used with object)
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use dress in a sentence
Ma was all drest up in her new brown silk, 'cause she expected Miss Diamond to-day.
Humorous Hits and How to Hold an Audience | Grenville KleiserNo wonder Alsop says: All complimental courtships drest up in critical Rarities are meer strangers to them.
The Colonial Cavalier | Maud Wilder GoodwinDon't you suppose I want them drest up as nice when they go to school, and look like other children?
Woman in Prison | Caroline H. WoodsThey was there on time, all drest up ter kill, and we took em down to the Standard, and had a big time.
The Bad Boy At Home | Walter T. Gray
British Dictionary definitions for dress
/ (drɛs) /
to put clothes on (oneself or another); attire
(intr)
to change one's clothes
to wear formal or evening clothes
(tr) to provide (someone) with clothing; clothe
(tr) to arrange merchandise in (a shop window) for effective display
(tr) to comb out or arrange (the hair) into position
(tr) to apply protective or therapeutic covering to (a wound, sore, etc)
(tr) to prepare (food, esp fowl and fish) for cooking or serving by cleaning, trimming, gutting, etc
(tr) to put a finish on (the surface of stone, metal, etc)
(tr) to till and cultivate (land), esp by applying manure, compost, or fertilizer
(tr) to prune and trim (trees, bushes, etc)
(tr) to groom (an animal, esp a horse)
(tr) to convert (tanned hides) into leather
(tr) archaic to spay or neuter (an animal)
angling to tie (a fly)
military to bring (troops) into line or (of troops) to come into line (esp in the phrase dress ranks)
dress ship nautical to decorate a vessel by displaying all signal flags on lines run from the bow to the stern over the mast trucks
a one-piece garment for a woman, consisting of a skirt and bodice
complete style of clothing; costume: formal dress; military dress
(modifier) suitable or required for a formal occasion: a dress shirt
the outer covering or appearance, esp of living things: trees in their spring dress of leaves
Origin of dress
1- See also dress down, dress up
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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