dolled up

Idioms  

1. Also, all dolled up. Dressed or fixed up smartly and, often, ostentatiously, usually for a special occasion. For example, There's no need to get all dolled up—it's just a picnic, or They dolled up the classroom for parents' night. This expression alludes to a person or object being as attractive as a pretty doll. It is also put verbally, to doll up, as in I wanted to doll up my apartment before the guests arrived. [Colloquial; c. 1900] Also see gussied up.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

dolled up

Meng Jiaxuan, 20, dolled up in her traditional outfit at Shichahai, said she had even researched poses for her photoshoot on Xiaohongshu.

From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026

His TikTok videos show him tending to horses in the barn, dolled up with his girlfriend at major races placing $5,000 bets and celebrating big wins.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026

Some of the Bowl’s facilities have been dolled up a bit, but the amphitheater feels fragile after the January wildfires.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2025

But there is concern the optics of rich celebrities dolled up with smiles on a red carpet could come off as tone deaf.

From BBC ● Feb. 2, 2025

I had never seen Miss Love when she wasn’t dolled up like one of those M. Rich & Bros. fashion advertisements in the Atlanta newspapers.

From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns