Definition of: dress

(dres) v. dressed or drest, dress·ing v.t.
1. To clothe; supply with clothing.
2. To trim or decorate; adorn, as a Christmas tree or a store window.
3. To treat medicinally, as a wound or sore.
4. To comb and arrange (hair).
5. To curry (a horse).
6. To prepare (stone, timber, fabrics, etc.) for use or sale.
7. To clean (fowl, game, fish, etc.) for cooking.
8. To till, trim, or prune.
9. To put in proper alinement, as troops.
10. Colloq. To scold; reprove severely: usually with down.
—v.i.
11. To put on or wear clothing, especially formal clothing.
12. To come into proper alinement.
—to dress ship To display the national colors, all signal flags, and bunting, as in honor of an individual or event.
—to dress up To put on or wear formal attire or clothing more elaborate than usually worn.
—noun
1. Covering for the body; clothes collectively; especially, elegant or fashionable attire.
2. The art of dressing correctly.
3. A gown or frock of a woman or child.
4. Full dress as opposed to business attire, etc.
5. External appearance; guise.
6. Dressing or size, as of leather.
—adjective
1. Of, pertaining to, or suitable for making dresses: dress goods.
2. To be worn on formal occasions: a dress suit, dress uniform. [<OF dresser, ult. <L directus. See DIRECT.] Synonyms (noun): apparel, array, attire, clothes, clothing, costume, garb, garments, habiliments, habit, raiment, robes, uniform, vestments, vesture. Clothing denotes the entire covering of the body, taken as a whole; clothes and garments view it as composed of separate parts. Clothes, clothing, and garments may be used of inner or outer covering; all the other words in the list (with possible rare exceptions in the case of raiment) refer to the outer garments. Array, raiment, and vesture are archaic or poetic; so, too, is habit, except in technical use to denote a lady's riding dress. The word vestments is now rare, except in ecclesiastical use. Apparel and attire are most frequently used of somewhat complete and elegant outer clothing. Dress may be used, specifically, for a woman's gown, and in that sense may be either rich or shabby; but in the general sense it denotes outer clothing which is meant to be elegant, complete, and appropriate to some social or public occasion; as, full dress, court dress, evening dress, etc. Dress has now largely displaced apparel and attire. Garb denotes the clothing characteristic of some class, profession, or the like; as, the garb of a priest. Costume is chiefly used for that which befits an assumed character; as, a theatrical costume; we sometimes speak of a national costume, etc. See HABIT. Antonyms: bareness, disarray, dishabille, exposure, nakedness, nudity, undress.