Category:Dress

Dress, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dressed or Drest; p. pr. & vb. n. Dressing.] Etym: [OF. drecier to make straight, raise, set up, prepare, arrange, F. dresser. (assumed) LL. directiare, fr. L. dirigere, directum, to direct; dis- + regere to rule. See Right, and cf. Address, Adroit, Direct, Dirge.]

1. To direct; to put right or straight; to regulate; to order. [Obs.] At all times thou shalt bless God and pray Him to dress thy ways. Chaucer.

Note: Dress is used reflexively in Old English, in sense of "to direct one's step; to addresss one's self." To Grisild again will I me dresse. Chaucer.

2. (Mil.)

Defn: To arrange in exact continuity of line, as soldiers; commonly to adjust to a straight line and at proper distance; to align; as, to dress the ranks.

3. (Med.)

Defn: To treat methodically with remedies, bandages, or curative appliances, as a sore, an ulcer, a wound, or a wounded or diseased part.

4. To adjust; to put in good order; to arrange; specifically: (a) To prepare for use; to fit for any use; to render suitable for an intended purpose; to get ready; as, to dress a slain animal; to dress meat; to dress leather or cloth; to dress or trim a lamp; to dress a garden; to dress a horse, by currying and rubbing; to dress grain, by cleansing it; in mining and metallurgy, to dress ores, by sorting and separating them.

And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it. Genesis 2:15. When he dresseth the lamps he shall burn incense. Exodus 30:7. Three hundred horses. . . smoothly dressed. Dryden. Dressing their hair with the white sea flower. Tennyson. If he felt obliged to expostulate, he might have dressed his censures in a kinder form. Carlyle. (b) To cut to proper dimensions, or give proper shape to, as to a tool by hammering; also, to smooth or finish. (c) To put in proper condition by appareling, as the body; to put clothes upon; to apparel; to invest with garments or rich decorations; to clothe; to deck. Dressed myself in such humility. Shak. Prove that ever I dress myself handsome till thy return. Shak. (d) To break and train for use, as a horse or other animal. To dress up or out, to dress elaborately, artificially, or pompously. "You see very often a king of England or France dressed up like a Julius Cæsar." Addison. -- To dress a ship (Naut.), to ornament her by hoisting the national colors at the peak and mastheads, and setting the jack forward; when dressed full, the signal flags and pennants are added. Ham. Nav. Encyc.

Syn. -- To attire; apparel; clothe; accouter; array; robe; rig; trim; deck; adorn; embellish.

dress Dress, v. i.

1. (Mil.)

Defn: To arrange one's self in due position in a line of soldiers; -- the word of command to form alignment in ranks; as, Right, dress!

2. To clothe or apparel one's self; to put on one's garments; to pay particular regard to dress; as, to dress quickly. "To dress for a ball." Latham. To flaunt, to dress, to dance, to thrum. Tennyson. To dress to the right, To dress to the left, To dress on the center (Mil.), to form alignment with reference to the soldier on the extreme right, or in the center, of the rank, who serves as a guide.

dress Dress, n.

1. That which is used as the covering or ornament of the body; clothes; garments; habit; apparel. "In your soldier's dress." Shak.

2. A lady's gown; as, silk or a velvet dress.

3. Attention to apparel, or skill in adjusting it. Men of pleasure, dress, and gallantry. Pope.

4. (Milling)

Defn: The system of furrows on the face of a millstone. Knight. Dress circle. See under Circle. -- Dress parade (Mil.), a parade in full uniform for review.

---excerpt from the Illustrated Bible Dictionary.

Dress - (1.) Materials used. The earliest and simplest an apron of fig-leaves sewed together (Genesis 3:7); then skins of animals (Genesis 3:21). Elijah's dress was probably the skin of a sheep (2 Kings 1:8). The Hebrews were early acquainted with the art of weaving hair into cloth (Exodus 26:7; Exodus 35:6), which formed the sackcloth of mourners. This was the material of John the Baptist's robe (Matthew 3:4). Wool was also woven into garments (Leviticus 13:47; Deuteronomy 22:11; Ezekiel 34:3; Job 31:20; Proverbs 27:26). The Israelites probably learned the art of weaving linen when they were in Egypt (1 Chronicles 4:21). Fine linen was used in the vestments of the high priest (Exodus 28:5), as well as by the rich (Genesis 41:42; Proverbs 31:22; Luke 16:19). The use of mixed material, as wool and flax, was forbidden (Leviticus 19:19; Deuteronomy 22:11). (2.) Color. The prevailing color was the natural white of the material used, which was sometimes rendered purer by the fuller's art (Psalms 104:1, Psalms 104:2; Isaiah 63:3; Mark 9:3). The Hebrews were acquainted with the art of dyeing (Genesis 37:3, Genesis 37:23). Various modes of ornamentation were adopted in the process of weaving (Exodus 28:6; Exodus 26:1, Exodus 26:31; Exodus 35:25), and by needle-work (Judges 5:30; Psalms 45:13). Dyed robes were imported from foreign countries, particularly from Phoenicia (Zephaniah 1:8). Purple and scarlet robes were the marks of the wealthy (Luke 16:19; 2 Samuel 1:24). (3.) Form. The robes of men and women were not very much different in form from each other. (a) The "coat" (kethoneth), of wool, cotton, or linen, was worn by both sexes. It was a closely-fitting garment, resembling in use and form our shirt (John 19:23). It was kept close to the body by a girdle (John 21:7). A person wearing this "coat" alone was described as naked (1 Samuel 19:24; Isaiah 20:2; 2 Kings 6:30; John 21:7); deprived of it he would be absolutely naked. (b) A linen cloth or wrapper (sadin) of fine linen, used somewhat as a nightshirt (Mark 14:51). It is mentioned in Judges 14:12, Judges 14:13, and rendered there "sheets." (c) An upper tunic (meil), longer than the "coat" (1 Samuel 2:19; 1 Samuel 24:4; 1 Samuel 28:14). In 1 Samuel 28:14 it is the mantle in which Samuel was enveloped; in 1 Samuel 24:4 it is the "robe" under which Saul slept. The disciples were forbidden to wear two "coats" (Matthew 10:10; Luke 9:3). (d) The usual outer garment consisted of a piece of woolen cloth like a Scotch plaid, either wrapped round the body or thrown over the shoulders like a shawl, with the ends hanging down in front, or it might be thrown over the head so as to conceal the face (2 Samuel 15:30; Esther 6:12). It was confined to the waist by a girdle, and the fold formed by the overlapping of the robe served as a pocket (2 Kings 4:39; Psalms 79:12; Haggai 2:12; Proverbs 17:23; Proverbs 21:14). Female dress. The "coat" was common to both sexes (Song of Songs 5:3). But peculiar to females were (1.) the "veil" or "wimple," a kind of shawl (Ruth 3:15; rendered "mantle," R.V., Isaiah 3:22); (2.) the "mantle," also a species of shawl (Isaiah 3:22); (3.) a "veil," probably a light summer dress (Genesis 24:65); (4.) a "stomacher," a holiday dress (Isaiah 3:24). The outer garment terminated in an ample fringe or border, which concealed the feet (Isaiah 47:2; Jeremiah 13:22). The dress of the Persians is described in Daniel 3:21. The reference to the art of sewing are few, inasmuch as the garments generally came forth from the loom ready for being worn, and all that was required in the making of clothes devolved on the women of a family (Proverbs 31:22; Acts 9:39). Extravagance in dress is referred to in Jeremiah 4:30; Ezekiel 16:10; Zephaniah 1:8 (R.V., "foreign apparel"); 1 Timothy 2:9; 1 Peter 3:3. Rending the robes was expressive of grief (Genesis 37:29, Genesis 37:34), fear (1 Kings 21:27), indignation (2 Kings 5:7), or despair (Judges 11:35; Esther 4:1). Shaking the garments, or shaking the dust from off them, was a sign of renunciation (Acts 18:6); wrapping them round the head, of awe (1 Kings 19:13) or grief (2 Samuel 15:30; casting them off, of excitement (Acts 22:23); laying hold of them, of supplication (1 Samuel 15:27). In the case of traveling, the outer garments were girded up (1 Kings 18:46). They were thrown aside also when they would impede action (Mark 10:50; John 13:4; Acts 7:58).