dress up

verb

dressed up; dressing up; dresses up

transitive verb

1

: to make more attractive, glamorous, or fancy

dress up a plain dessert with a rich chocolate sauce

2

a

: to attire in best or formal clothes

b

: to attire in clothes suited to a particular role

3

: to present in the most attractive or impressive light

a fiasco dressed up as a triumph

intransitive verb

: to get dressed up

Synonyms of dress up

• dress
• doll up

Examples of dress up in a Sentence

we always like to dress up when going to parties

the war was a fiasco that the administration tried to dress up as a triumph

Recent Examples on the Web

Molly Gordon is all dressed up for the Prada Mode event on June 3 in New York City. —People Staff, PEOPLE, 6 June 2026

Karl-Anthony Towns didn’t dress up the point. —C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 5 June 2026

Some of the resort offerings feel a little forced (or like an episode of White Lotus), especially the Haab dinner experience when locals dress up in traditional Maya garb and put on a performance to honor the four cardinal directions. —Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 3 June 2026

Stith is asking attendees to dress up and wear green in honor of Words, Wings, and Wine's seventh anniversary. —Cbs Baltimore Staff, CBS News, 3 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1513, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2a

Rhymes for dress up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup

Kids Definition

dress up

verb

1

: to put on one's best or formal clothes

2

: to put on strange or fancy clothes

dress up for Halloween