underdress
Americanverb (used without object)
noun
-
garments worn beneath others; underclothes.
-
a slip, petticoat, or other underskirt, especially one designed to be seen when worn, as beneath a redingote.
Etymology
Origin of underdress
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.
See Examples For:
An underdress of heavy fleece wool and waterproof canvas is worn inside, the rubber canvas trousers, with pockets, outside.
From Time Magazine Archive
He wasn't about to underdress for the occasion.
From Time Magazine Archive
He must be just defunct, for the purgatorial garments fit him not, he stumbles at every step, and when he trips an underdress is unveiled that's like a City waiter's.
From The Confessions of a Caricaturist, Vol. 1 by Furniss, Harry
Eleanor was kneeling on the window-seat where she sometimes slept, her bright braids falling over her white linen underdress and gown of soft blue wool.
From Masters of the Guild by Lamprey, L.
This was used for the finely plaited underdress seen at the neck and foot of mediæval costume.
From Of Six Mediæval Women To Which Is Added A Note on Mediæval Gardens by Kemp-Welch, Alice
A friend who was at the party with me recalls that, as underdressed as he was, Epstein pulled everyone’s focus to him—even the most powerful people in the room.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 20, 2026
Unless you come decked out in your best Armani or Gaultier to see Carole Cook’s new show, “Dress Up,” in the new Upstairs at the Pasadena Playhouse series, you’re definitely going to feel underdressed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 11, 2023
I’m going to be underdressed for the magentaverse.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 2, 2022
If I didn’t feel I was the country club type—and oh, let me tell you, I am definitely not—if the place made me feel uncomfortable and underdressed, etc.,
From Slate ● May 9, 2021
Summer doesn’t last in Indianapolis, and even though it was still September, Daisy was underdressed for the weather in a short-sleeve top and skirt.
From "Turtles All the Way Down" by John Green
His biggest etiquette pet peeves include underdressing and overfamiliarity, especially in virtual settings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 16, 2025
Avoid the gruesome pitfalls of overdressing or underdressing.
From Slate ● Feb. 2, 2012
Last week, after three winters of wartime underdressing, U.S. partygoers were back in evening clothes.
From Time Magazine Archive
"I can't ever put on all those other things," he declared, indicating the elaborate underdressing.
From The Wrong Twin by Wilson, Harry Leon
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.
