Advertisement - Continue reading below

Definition of "dressing-down" [dressing-down]

  • A severe scolding. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "dressing-down" in a sentence
  • "After the third ad break, the undercover boss gives that middle manager the dressing-down he or she so richly deserves, cash is dispensed in the direction of some of the workers right before the final commercial break -- and They All Live Happily Ever After."
  • "If he was frowning and tight-lipped, they knew something had displeased him and that somebody was in for a nasty dressing-down."
  • "How can Lindsay not see how she has destroyed a once A-list film career and with every DUI, theft conviction, trip to rehab, jail term, dressing-down by a judge AND nights out of partying, she is hammering more nails into the coffin of her former career."