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sundress

American  
[suhn-dres] / ˈsʌnˌdrɛs /

noun

  • sundresses
    plural
  1. a dress with a bodice styled to expose the arms, shoulders, and back, for wear during hot weather.


sundress British  
/ ˈsʌnˌdrɛs /

noun

  1. a dress for hot weather that exposes the shoulders, arms, and back, esp one with straps over the shoulders

"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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of sundress

First recorded in 1940–45; sun + dress

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Savannah crossed town to the University of Arizona, her alma mater, and strode the quad in sunglasses and a sundress, trailed by the marching band playing the school’s fight song, “Bear Down, Arizona.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026

Every spring, I get the urge to buy something new: a sundress, a pretty blouse or something hopeful after a long, drab winter.

From Salon ● Apr. 25, 2025

“I bought three new pairs of jeans. I wore a sundress for the first time in a decade,” she says.

From Scientific American ● Oct. 16, 2023

In “Sunflowers,” after Rebecca falls into a canal, she borrows a pink floral sundress that her mystery man says belonged to his ex-wife.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 26, 2023

She had on a yellow sundress that Michael had never seen before.

From "The First State of Being" by Erin Entrada Kelly

Customers love the firm's massive catalogue of ultra-cheap items, from $8 sundresses to $2 bracelets, at a time when inflation has shrunk purchasing power around the world.

From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026

Many wore sundresses, cowboy boots, leopard print and, to comply with tight security, plastic see-through purses.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2025

Which was, in fact, already set up across the room—it was just covered in sundresses and tops.

From Slate ● Jun. 1, 2025

Although this week’s hot weather may have prompted an early appearance of flip-flops and sundresses, forecasters warn this stretch of heat isn’t indicative of an early start to springtime.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 27, 2025

Her biggest struggle is figuring out how to transform her suitcase full of bathing suits and sundresses into trendy work clothes.

From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller

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