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dress-up
[ dres-uhp ]
/ ĖdrÉsĖŹp /
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This shows grade level based on the word's complexity.
adjective
being an occasion, situation, etc., for which one must be somewhat formally well-dressed: the first dress-up dance of the season.
noun
Informal.Usually dress-ups.
- a person's best clothes: Wear your dress-ups for the reception.
- accessories or other added features: a car with custom dress-ups.
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Origin of dress-up
First recorded in 1665ā75; noun, adj. use of verb phrase dress up
Words nearby dress-up
dress rehearsal, dress shield, dress shirt, dress suit, dress uniform, dress-up, dressy, dressy casual, drest, drew, drey
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Ā© Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use dress-up in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for dress-up
dress up
verb (adverb)
to attire (oneself or another) in one's best clothes
to put fancy dress, disguise, etc, on (oneself or another), as in children's gameslet's dress up as ghosts!
(tr) to improve the appearance or impression ofit's no good trying to dress up the facts
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
Ā© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 Ā© HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with dress-up
dress up
Wear formal or elaborate clothes, as in I love to dress up for a party. [Late 1600s] For the antonym, see dress down, def. 2.
Put on a costume of some kind, as in The children love dressing up as witches and goblins. [Late 1800s]
Adorn or disguise something in order to make it more interesting or appealing. For example, She has a way of dressing up her account with fanciful details. [Late 1600s]
The American HeritageĀ® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright Ā© 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.