dresses up

present tense third-person singular of dress up
1
2
3
as in spruces
to make more desirable dressed up the house with new windows and a paint job before putting it on the market

Synonyms & Similar Words

4

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of dresses up The eye-catching hem instantly dresses up a pair of basic blue jeans, especially when styled with a blouse or sweater. — Nicol Natale, PEOPLE, 16 Sep. 2026 In the dark comedy Bad Santa, Thornton plays Willie, a miserable, heavy-drinking con man who dresses up as Santa with his elf sidekick (Tony Cox) to rob department stores on Christmas Eve. — Leigh Blickley, Entertainment Weekly, 16 Sep. 2026 The easy style slips right onto the foot, offers actual support, and dresses up your favorite wardrobe staples. — Kaelin Dodge, InStyle, 3 Sep. 2026 In a town that dresses up the seafood shack classics, Barbary Coast’s Mediterranean menu stands apart. — Madeline Bilis, Travel + Leisure, 18 Aug. 2026 Allie dresses up as Jennifer Lopez—plunging green Versace dress and all. — Kenneal Patterson, Vanity Fair, 29 May 2026 Creamy Parmesan sauce dresses up bowtie pasta, collard greens, asparagus, and peas for a simple and nutritious main course. — Ashlyn Ware, Midwest Living, 24 Apr. 2026 These men are supported by Nancy, a woman who dresses up in a nurse’s costume but seems to have no medical training. — Robert Rubsam, The Atlantic, 26 Mar. 2026 The performer dresses up in a Bigfoot costume and plays along with electronic music on the saxophone. — Patrick Connolly, The Orlando Sentinel, 25 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dresses up
Verb
  • Possessing a Midwestern accent, Calvin Klein dresses, Black American skin and hair care products, and a butter-pecan skin tone, Ericka quickly wins over the crew Paulina has ruled for years.
    — Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Nina Piccini, a personal stylist who typically dresses female founders and executives, says workplace clothing is, more than anything, a visual cue.
    — Morgan Sullivan, Glamour, 29 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • With a virtual private network, your requests are pushed through an anonymized server in a different location, which disguises your identifying information.
    — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 8 Oct. 2026
  • L’Oréal Paris’ True Match Radiant Serum Concealer checks both boxes, delivering medium coverage that disguises dark circles, redness, blemishes, and discoloration without looking heavy.
    — Christa Joanna Lee, Allure, 18 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Murphy also mentions Zernell Gillie’s gourmand-adjacent Jazz, wherein honey sweetens tobacco, mahogany, and resinous opoponax (a type of myrrh).
    — Lauren Valenti, InStyle, 9 Sep. 2026
  • The legislation also sweetens conditions for productions that choose to monetize a portion of their tax credits instead of putting the full value toward their tax liability.
    — Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 1 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • But like Fenberg, Democratic and liberal critics argue that Advance essentially distills its proposals into simple, even deceptive, language that masks the true impact.
    — Seth Klamann, Denver Post, 13 Sep. 2026
  • None of it masks the fact that nostalgia, no matter how closely held and beloved, is not enough to save a film.
    — Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 11 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Philadelphia improves to 7-3-4 at home, while RSL falls to 1-10-3 on the road.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 10 Oct. 2026
  • By defining requirements upfront and approving change orders quickly, the model improves schedule certainty and ensures vessels are mission-ready when they are delivered.
    — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 9 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • The three-word message conceals the depth of a man worthy of dissection.
    — Alec Lewis, New York Times, 10 Sep. 2026
  • The snail’s diminutive size, however, conceals a massive secret.
    — Carrie Arnold Contributing, Quanta Magazine, 2 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • The 20% off everything Fall Design Event also includes brand favorites, such as the Baywood quilt, which features a hand-pick stitching pattern that enhances its tactile quality.
    — Yelena Moroz Alpert, Architectural Digest, 6 Oct. 2026
  • The monitor's Black Equalizer feature ensures that even the darkest shadows are visible, and HDR10 enhances highlights for eye-popping color.
    — George Yang, PC Magazine, 6 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • On the day of the scavenger hunt, the team hides its creations around town, while ravenous worm-hunters eagerly await their first hint of where a ceramic worm decorated to look like a pickle, or a crayon, or a rainbow dinosaur, can be found.
    — Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 12 Oct. 2026
  • When Seungil says the visits are over for good, Minjeong grabs Ppoppo on impulse and hides out at a friend’s place, where her joy soon tips into obsession.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 10 Oct. 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dresses up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dresses%20up. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!