dress code

noun

: formally or socially imposed standards of dress

Examples of dress code in a Sentence

The school imposed a new dress code that forbids students from wearing jeans.

Recent Examples on the Web

Her husband George Clooney matched the evening’s dress code in a navy suit with a white open-neck shirt and black dress shoes. —Maggie Clancy, Footwear News, 7 Feb. 2026

Business casual is the minimum dress code, per its website. —Susan Selasky, Freep.com, 30 Jan. 2026

John Labriola, a lobbyist from Christian Family Coalition — a group that supports the bill — said that despite the fact that religious freedom protections exist, many school districts continue to discriminate against students in the areas of dress code, coursework and bringing a Bible to school. —Lauren Costantino, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2026

At Starbucks stores, the company revised the dress code for baristas, suggesting employees wear solid black tops and remove ear gauges larger than a quarter. —Jake Angelo, Fortune, 30 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1889, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for dress code

• abode
• anode
• barcode
• bestowed
• boatload
• borrowed
• carload
• caseload
• cathode
• commode
• corrode
• crossroad