dress rehearsal

noun

Definition of dress rehearsal

1 : a full rehearsal (as of a play) in costume and with stage properties shortly before the first performance

2 : a practice exercise for something to come : dry run

See dress rehearsal defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of dress rehearsal from the Web

Waymo's recent buildup in the Phoenix area seems less like a technology development effort than a dress rehearsal for rolling out a commercial product.

— timothy b. lee, Ars Technica, "What it’s like to live in Phoenix? “Waymo units all over the damn place”," 1 Nov. 2017
If Friday night was a dress rehearsal, the Cardinals appear to be ready for prime time.

— jason frakes, The Courier-Journal, "Friday Night Rewind | Scott County football seeks return to Louisville for 6-A semifinal," 21 Oct. 2017
For me, every game and every training session is a dress rehearsal for next year.

— alicia delgallo, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Orlando City players have one last chance to impress in Philadelphia finale," 21 Oct. 2017
The show reportedly had a sketch and Weekend Update bits that referenced Weinstein but pulled them after dress rehearsal.

— luke darby, GQ, "SNL Finally Tackles Harvey Weinstein And Kate McKinnon Goes For It," 15 Oct. 2017
If this was a dress rehearsal for Wednesday’s opener, why wasn’t Sam Morin or Travis Sanheim in the lineup?

— sam carchidi, Philly.com, "Six observations from Flyers' preseason-ending loss to Islanders," 2 Oct. 2017
But many are wondering: Was Irma merely a dress rehearsal for The Big One?

— Washington Post, "Tampa dodged Irma’s worst, but still at risk and unprepared," 13 Sep. 2017
Football fans are so sick of NFL dress rehearsals by then.

— rick bonnell, charlotteobserver, "Remember the name Deebo Samuel: You’ll see him play on Sundays in the NFL," 2 Sep. 2017
A few years ago, a student stage manager saw a girl open an off-limits backstage door during a dress rehearsal and jumped up in exasperation.

— doug o'harra, Alaska Dispatch News, "The lonely lady haunting West High School in Anchorage, Alaska," 30 Oct. 2013

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dress rehearsal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.