dress rehearsal

noun

1
: a full rehearsal (as of a play) in costume and with stage properties shortly before the first performance
2
: a practice exercise for something to come : dry run

Examples of dress rehearsal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
After she was sent to the hospital during the show's dress rehearsal, Braxton was forced to bow out of the competition in 2015 due to blood clots in her lungs. Diana Pearl, PEOPLE, 29 Oct. 2025 On July 31, for example, the crew entered their spacecraft in their flight suits for a multiday training — a dress rehearsal of sorts — at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Matt Alderton, USA Today, 24 Oct. 2025 This one felt like a preseason dress rehearsal game for the Heat, which tightened its rotation to nine players for Friday’s first half. Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 18 Oct. 2025 The Lakers will use Friday's preseason finale against the Sacramento Kings as a dress rehearsal with their fully healthy rotation, per Redick. Valentina Martinez, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for dress rehearsal

Word History

First Known Use

1828, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of dress rehearsal was in 1828

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Cite this Entry

“Dress rehearsal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dress%20rehearsal. Accessed 2 Nov. 2025.

Kids Definition

dress rehearsal

noun
: a rehearsal of a play in costume and with stage properties shortly before the first performance

More from Merriam-Webster on dress rehearsal

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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