dress rehearsal
Americannoun
noun
-
the last complete rehearsal of a play or other work, using costumes, scenery, lighting, etc, as for the first night
-
any full-scale practice
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of dress rehearsal
First recorded in 1820–30
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.
The third season opens with the sound of Weaver breathing deeply in a dress rehearsal for her solo in a DCC stage show.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026
He told everyone it was a pleasure to be there as a dress rehearsal for testifying before Congress.
From Salon ● Jun. 12, 2026
Thirty years later, Steven Spielberg would bring Pakula’s idea to fruition with “The Post,” about Graham’s decision to publish the Pentagon Papers, a dress rehearsal for the even higher stakes of Watergate a year later.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026
He could get a dress rehearsal opening the batting for England Lions in two fixtures against South Africa A in May.
From BBC ● Apr. 20, 2026
We saw this as a dress rehearsal for the campaign Mr. de Klerk would wage against us.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
