INDEX:
1. wearing good clothes and looking tidy
2. to make yourself look well-dressed and tidy
RELATED WORDS
see also
↑ FASHIONABLE/NOT FASHIONABLE
↑ STYLE/ELEGANCE
↑ CLOTHES
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1. wearing good clothes and looking tidy
▷ well-dressed /ˌwel ˈdrest◂/ [adjective]
wearing good or expensive clothes :
▪ The photograph showed a well-dressed man in his early 50s.
▪ The young woman with the children looked too well-dressed to be a nanny.
▪ He walked into the party with a beautiful well-dressed blonde on his arm.
▷ smart /smɑːʳt/ [adjective] British
if you look smart or your clothes are smart, you are dressed in an attractive way and you look very tidy :
▪ The editor was slim, smart and dark-haired.
▪ You look really smart today, Chris. Have you got a job interview?
▪ The waitresses were the smartest ones I’d ever seen.
▪ That’s a smart suit, Sam.
smartly [adverb]
▪ The children stood in neat rows, smartly dressed in school uniform.
▷ neat /niːt/ [adjective]
If you look neat or if you have neat clothes, the clothes you are wearing are clean, ironed, and fit you properly :
▪ She had been waiting there all night, but she still looked neat.
▪ A man in a neat gray suit sat on the other side of the bar.
neat and clean
▪ They didn’t have much money, but the children were always neat and clean.
neatly [adverb]
▪ He was polite and neatly dressed.
▷ presentable /prɪˈzentəb ə l/ [adjective]
well-dressed enough for meeting people, socially or in your job :
▪ We don’t have to wear suits for work, but we do have to look presentable.
▪ Arnold was a very presentable young fellow.
▷ well-groomed /ˌwel ˈgruːmd◂/ [adjective]
someone who is well-groomed has clean, neat hair, wears good clothes, and looks as if they have spent a lot of time and money on their appearance :
▪ She’s marrying a well-groomed successful businessman named Paul.
▪ Ambassadors’ wives are expected to look fashionable and well-groomed.
▷ sharp /ʃɑːʳp/ [adjective]
dressed in a way that shows you have good judgement about what clothes look good on you and what other people will admire :
▪ Hey, you look sharp. Where’d you get the suit?
sharp dresser
▪ Paula’s a very sharp dresser, so I always have her go shopping with me.
▷ dapper /ˈdæpəʳ/ [adjective]
a man, especially a small man, who is dapper wears neat, tidy clothes and is generally very smart in appearance :
▪ The Captain was a dapper little man with a neat moustache and shiny shoes.
▪ Graham walked into the restaurant, looking dapper in a grey business suit.
▷ well turned out /ˌwel tɜːʳnd ˈaʊt◂/ [adjective phrase]
someone who is well turned out has taken care that their clothes and general appearance are clean and neat, for example for a special occasion :
▪ Nico looked trim and well turned out in a new dark suit.
▪ The principal expected everyone to be well turned out on graduation day.
▷ snazzy /ˈsnæzi/ [adjective] informal
clothes that are snazzy are bright, colourful, and attractive :
▪ I love those snazzy little silk dresses.
▪ There were racks and racks of snazzy swimming trunks.
▪ Dale spun around the dance floor in a snazzy blue suit.
2. to make yourself look well-dressed and tidy
▷ smarten yourself up /ˌsmɑːʳtn jɔːʳself ˈʌp/ [verb phrase] British
if you smarten yourself up, you make yourself look smart by changing your clothes, arranging your hair etc :
▪ She’s smartening herself up in the ladies’ room.
▪ Jeremy, go smarten yourself up before dinner.
smarten up
▪ Smarten up! It’s time for inspection.
▷ spruce (yourself) up/get spruced up /ˌspruːs (jɔːʳself) ˈʌp, get ˌspruːst ˈʌp/ [verb phrase]
to wash, tidy your hair, put on good clothes etc before doing something or going somewhere :
▪ On Saturdays we got spruced up and headed off into town.
▪ He spent a few minutes sprucing up in front of the mirror and he was ready to go.
▪ I think I’ll go and spruce myself up before dinner.
▷ make yourself presentable /ˌmeɪk jɔːʳself prɪˈzentəb ə l/ [verb phrase]
to wash, put on nice enough clothes, and tidy your hair so that you can meet people :
▪ Give me a few more minutes to make myself presentable and I’ll be with you.