Dress up meaning
Dress up means to put on clothes that are smarter than usual. It can also mean to put on special clothes to look like someone or something else.
dress up
dress up · dressed · dressing
Do we need to dress up for the dinner?
Dress up meanings and examples
3 meanings, each with its own CEFR level. A level marked ~ is our estimate: Oxford and Cambridge give none for that meaning.
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1
Put on clothes that are smarter than usual
dress up
- Do we need to dress up for the dinner?
- He dressed up in a suit for the interview.
- I hate dressing up. I live in jeans.
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2
Put on special clothes to look like someone or something else
dress up
- My son dressed up as a dinosaur for the party.
- Everyone dresses up at Halloween.
- What are you going to dress up as?
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3
Make something look or sound better than it really is
dress something up
- They dressed up the job cuts as a new plan.
- You can dress up a simple salad with nuts and cheese.
- Don’t dress it up. Just tell me the truth.
Café orders
New friends
At the airport
Slova
Use dress up in real conversations
- Learn new words with picture cards
- Talk with Felix, an AI tutor, about the things you love
- Short lessons at your level, a few minutes a day
Is dress up separable?
When it is about clothes, dress up usually has no object: We dressed up. Add as for a costume: dress up as a pirate. You can also dress someone up: She dressed the kids up as bees.
Dressed up is also an adjective: You look very dressed up! Do not confuse it with get dressed, which just means put on clothes.
Verb tenses for dress up
| Present | I dress up · she dresses up |
|---|---|
| Past | dressed up |
| Present perfect | have dressed up |
| -ing form | dressing up |
Common mistakes with dress up
What learners often say, and what to say instead.
Wrong: Hurry up and dress up, we leave in five minutes.
Right: Hurry up and get dressed, we leave in five minutes.
Get dressed means put on clothes; dress up means smart clothes or a costume.
Wrong: She dressed up like a cat for the party.
Right: She dressed up as a cat for the party.
Use as for a costume.
Wrong: I dressed up my best suit.
Right: I dressed up in my best suit.
Use in before the clothes you wear.
Synonyms and opposites of dress up
Words close to it, and words that mean the opposite.
Similar
- get dressedjust put on your clothes
- put ondress your body in one piece of clothing
- wearhave clothes on your body
Opposite
- dress downwear more casual clothes than usual
- get undressedtake off your clothes
Dress up quiz
Three quick questions. Pick an answer to see if it is right and why.
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1It’s a fancy wedding, so we all ___.
Dress up means wear smarter clothes than usual.
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2Choose the right sentence.
The pattern is dress up as + character.
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3“The report dresses up a bad year as a success.” What does it do?
Dress something up means make it seem better than it is.
Find your level
The phrasal verbs test adapts as you answer, from A2 to C1, and shows which ones you miss.
- get upA1get out of bed after you sleep
- take upB1start a new hobby or activity
- put upB1fix something to a wall, or raise something higher
- look upA2find information in a dictionary, a book or online
- go upB1become higher, like a price, a number or a temperature
- come upB2be mentioned or talked about
- give upB1stop doing or having something, often a habit
- break upB1end a romantic relationship
Dress up FAQ
Questions people ask about dress up.
What is the difference between dress up and get dressed?
Get dressed means put on your normal clothes. Dress up means wear smart clothes or a costume.
What is dress-up?
Dress-up is a children’s game of putting on costumes. A dress-up box is full of old clothes and costumes.
What does dress down mean?
Dress down is the opposite of dress up: wear more relaxed clothes. Some offices have a dress-down Friday.
Use dress up in real conversations
In Slova you learn new words with picture cards, then use them when you talk about the things you love. A few minutes a day, at your level.