gussy up

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gussy up

(ˈɡʌsɪ)

vb (tr, adverb) , -sies, -sying or -sied

slang chiefly US to give (a person or thing) a smarter or more interesting appearance

[C20: probably from the name Gussie, diminutive of Augusta]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

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Verb

gussy up - put on special clothes to appear particularly appealing and attractive; "She never dresses up, even when she goes to the opera"; "The young girls were all fancied up for the party"

attire, deck out, deck up, dress up, fancy up, fig out, fig up, rig out, tog out, tog up, trick out, trick up, overdress, prink, get up

primp, preen, dress, plume - dress or groom with elaborate care; "She likes to dress when going to the opera"

prank - dress up showily; "He pranked himself out in his best clothes"

tart up - dress up in a cheap and provocative way

dress, dress up - dress in a certain manner; "She dresses in the latest Paris fashion"; "he dressed up in a suit and tie"

enrobe - adorn with a robe

dizen, bedizen - dress up garishly and tastelessly

dress, get dressed - put on clothes; "we had to dress quickly"; "dress the patient"; "Can the child dress by herself?"

costume, dress up - dress in a costume; "We dressed up for Halloween as pumpkins"

References in periodicals archive ?

Woolf gave it a bit of a gussy up, and lived there with his partner, Robert Koch Woolf until the mid-1970s.

DeMann hopes BevHills Mansion is in demand

Meanwhile, the fight between McLeod and Chief Boden intensifies; Isabella persuades Mills to gussy up for a gala; Casey deals with the fact that Dawson won't be around as much anymore .

TV Top 5

The solution from American director and choreographer Patti Columbo, the artistic force behind this new touring production, is to gussy up the famous dance numbers and throw in toned torsos and rippling six-packs.