dress rehearsal
noun
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
Examples of dress rehearsal in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Jost asked him to wear really short shorts and Ferrell agreed — something no one saw until the night of, since there was no dress rehearsal.
—
Emily Longeretta, Variety, 16 June 2025
The tournament takes place across 11 different US venues in what is effectively a dress rehearsal for next year’s World Cup.
MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, will host both semi-finals and the final.
—Dan Cancian, Forbes.com, 11 June 2025
The Club World Cup is considered in many ways to be a dress rehearsal for the big event, the 2026 World Cup to be hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
—Anne M. Peterson, Chicago Tribune, 8 June 2025
This flight and the previous three have been dress rehearsals both for crews and for Axiom’s onsite mission control, providing critical experience working in orbit and managing activities from the ground.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 6 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for dress rehearsal
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Emily Longeretta, Variety, 16 June 2025
The tournament takes place across 11 different US venues in what is effectively a dress rehearsal for next year’s World Cup.
MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, will host both semi-finals and the final.
—Dan Cancian, Forbes.com, 11 June 2025
The Club World Cup is considered in many ways to be a dress rehearsal for the big event, the 2026 World Cup to be hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
—Anne M. Peterson, Chicago Tribune, 8 June 2025
This flight and the previous three have been dress rehearsals both for crews and for Axiom’s onsite mission control, providing critical experience working in orbit and managing activities from the ground.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 6 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for dress rehearsal
Cite this Entry
“Dress rehearsal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dress%20rehearsal. Accessed 28 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share