Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition
DRESS
I. verb see: right
Date: 14th century
transitive verb
1. to make or set straight, to arrange (as troops) in a straight line and at proper intervals, to prepare for use or service, to add decorative details or accessories to ; embellish ,
4. to put clothes on , to provide with clothing , dress down ,
6. to apply dressings or medicaments to , b. to arrange (as the hair) by combing, brushing, or curling, to groom and curry (an animal), to kill and prepare for market or for consumption, cultivate , tend , to put through a finishing process, intransitive verb
1. to put on clothing, to put on or wear formal, elaborate, or fancy clothes , to weigh after being dressed, to align oneself with the next soldier in a line to make the line straight,
II. noun
Date: 1606
apparel , clothing , an outer garment (as for a woman or girl) usually consisting of a one-piece bodice and skirt, covering, adornment, or appearance appropriate or peculiar to a particular time, a particular form of presentation ; guise ,
III. adjective
Date: 1767
suitable for a formal occasion , requiring or permitting formal dress , relating to or used for a dress