dress down
To scold.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“The boss had to dress down the employee for being late.”
“After the team failed to meet the deadline, the manager called a meeting to dress down everyone involved in the project.”
“The stern headmaster summoned the student to his office to dress him down for his repeated lack of discipline in the classroom.”
From analogy with dress up.
- 01
all dressed up and nowhere to go
Elaborately attired or otherwise fully prepared for an anticipated situation or activity which, nevertheless, fails to occur.
- 02
dress to kill
To dress up so as to impress others (especially of the opposite sex).
- 03
dressed to kill
Dressed in a very fashionable style.
- 04
dressed to the nines
Very fancily or formally dressed; wearing very showy or splendid clothing.
Last updated August 10, 2026