drɛs ʌp
neutral
beginner
- Base verb:
- dress
- Particle:
- up
- Separable:
- Yes
What does "dress up" mean?
- To wear formal or special clothes.
- To wear a costume.
- To make something look better than it is.
Examples
- You don't need to dress up — it's a casual dinner.
- The kids dressed up as superheroes for Halloween.
- They tried to dress up the old apartment with new paint.
- She loves any excuse to dress up and go out.
How to use it
Very common in everyday English.
Word order
Can be separated: 'dress yourself up'. Often used without an object.
Similar expressions
smarten up
doll up
put on a costume
Opposites
dress down
Related phrasal verbs
- get up
To rise from bed after sleeping
- turn up
To increase the volume, heat, or intensity of something
- give up
To stop trying to do something, often because it is too difficult
- bring up
To mention or introduce a topic in conversation
- go up
To increase in price, level, or amount
- come up
To be mentioned or discussed
Use it in a practice answer
Try "dress up" in a CELPIP-style Speaking or Writing task. The AI feedback tells you whether your word choice worked.