dressing-down
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of dressing-down
1860–65, noun use (with -ing 1 ) of verb phrase dress down
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.
It reached its nadir in December 2004 when he and his cabinet were given a public dressing-down by China's then-president Hu Jintao for poor performance.
From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026
His famous dressing-down of his senior staff, actual quiet professionals, should be considered at some length:
From Slate ● Apr. 13, 2026
Some of those present left unhappy with the message and what they took as a dressing-down, the people said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 26, 2026
"The recent dressing-down of Ukraine President Zelensky by President Trump and Vice-President Vance was a glitch on a media stage."
From Salon ● Mar. 10, 2025
She’d get a dressing-down from the mechanics for that, in the unlikely event she actually survived this never-ending nightmare.
From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer
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.
