overdress
Americanverb (used with or without object)
-
to dress with too much display, finery, or formality.
He certainly overdressed for the occasion.
-
to put excessive clothing on.
She tends to overdress her children.
noun
verb
noun
Etymology
Origin of overdress
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’s just flagrantly obnoxious to overdress in a workplace situation, especially when you’re a junior member,” said Gunn, best known for being a clear-eyed mentor on the fashion-design competition show “Project Runway.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 7, 2026
Still, it’s hard to resist the temptation to overdress.
From Slate • Oct. 24, 2020
“She is very good-looking, of course, but she tends to overdress for the occasion.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2019
Like the also-new Millie’s in Spring Valley, the Salt Line is a fish house that doesn’t overdress for success.
From Washington Post • Aug. 28, 2017
The bridal dress, says Miss Davis, was of a pink satin, with an overdress of white lace; her slippers also were of white satin.
From John Greenleaf Whittier His Life, Genius, and Writings by Kennedy, W. Sloane
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.
