Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
dress-up [dres-uhp] ExamplesWord Origin 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.
Origin of dress-up First recorded in 1665–75; noun, adj. use of verb phrase dress up Examples from the Web for dress-up Historical Examples of dress-up
Well then, when Miss Norris was going to dress-up, Cayley gave it away.
A. A. Milne
Arf of its only ousemaidin; and the other arf is dress-up and make-believe.
George Bernard Shaw
As a rule, young people love a “dress-up” party, and the guests all entered into the spirit of the thing.
Carolyn Wells
Dey tell me dat w’en slaves wus shipped to New Orleans dey had to be dress-up in nice clothes.
Slave Narratives Vol. XIV. South Carolina, Part 2
Works Projects Administration
Her first contact with him in a well-lighted room made her aware that there were other things to the person besides the dress-up.
Anzia Yezierska