dress-down
[ dres-doun ]
/ ˈdrɛsˌdaʊn /
adjective
pertaining to or being a policy that allows employees to dress less formally than usual: dress-down days during the summer.
Words nearby dress-down
dress shield,
dress shirt,
dress suit,
dress uniform,
dress up,
dress-down,
dress-down friday,
dress-up,
dressage,
dressed to kill,
dresser
Definition for dress down (2 of 2)
Origin of dress
1275–1325; Middle English
dressen < Anglo-French
dresser, dresc(i)er, to arrange, prepare, Old French
drecier < Vulgar Latin
*dīrēctiāre, derivative of Latin
dīrēctus
direct; noun use of v. in sense “attire” from circa 1600
synonym study for dress
1.
Dress,
costume,
gown refer to garments for women.
Dress is the general term for a garment:
a black dress.
Costume is used of the style of dress appropriate to some occasion, purpose, period, or character, especially as used on the stage, at balls, at court, or the like, and may apply to men's garments as well:
an 18th-century costume.
Gown is usually applied to a dress more expensive and elegant than the ordinary, usually long, to be worn on a special occasion:
a wedding gown.
OTHER WORDS FROM dress
half-dressed, adjective out·dress, verb (used with object)British Dictionary definitions for dress down (1 of 2)
dress down
verb (adverb)
(tr) informal
to reprimand severely or scold (a person)
(intr)
to dress in a casual or informal manner, esp at work
British Dictionary definitions for dress down (2 of 2)
dress
/ (drɛs) /
verb
noun
See also
dress down,
dress up
Word Origin for dress
C14: from Old French
drecier, ultimately from Latin
dīrigere to
direct
Medical definitions for dress down
dress
[ drĕs ]
v.
To apply medication, bandages, or other therapeutic materials to an area of the body such as a wound.
Idioms and Phrases with dress down
dress down
Scold, reprimand, as in The sergeant will dress down the entire unit. In the 15th century the verb dress alone was used in the sense of “punish,” down being added several centuries later. It also gave rise to the noun dressing down for punishment with blows or words. For example, The teacher gave the girls a severe dressing down.
Wear informal clothes, as in It's best to dress down for a party like a barbecue. [Mid-1900s] For the antonym, see dress up.