1 C1 idiomatic informal
To style someone deliberately to look dull, frumpy, or unfashionable, often for a role or performance.
"The make-up team dowed her up for the role of the village schoolmistress."
separable
dowdy up
C1 informal separable transitive
To make someone or something look old-fashioned, dull, or unfashionable.
In plain English
To dress someone or style something in a boring or unfashionable way.
What does "dowdy up" mean?
One main meaning — here's how to use it.
Literal vs figurative
Words literally mean
To make (someone) up to look dowdy (unfashionable).
Actually means
To dress someone or style something in a boring or unfashionable way.
Usage tip
Very rare. Sometimes used in fashion, film, or theatre contexts when a character needs to appear deliberately unglamorous. Formed from the adjective 'dowdy' (old-fashioned, dull in appearance). Most speakers would not recognise this as a standard phrasal verb.
Words that pair with "dowdy up"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
character actress costume look wardrobe
How to conjugate "dowdy up"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
dowdy up
I/you/we/they
3rd person
dowdies up
he/she/it
Past simple
dowdied up
yesterday
Past participle
dowdied up
have + pp
-ing form
dowdying up
continuous
Hear "dowdy up" in the wild
Listen to native speakers using "dowdy up" in real YouTube videos — click a clip to watch it on Looplines.
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