Meaning & use
dresser
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Meanings
nouncountable
A piece of bedroom furniture with drawers for keeping folded clothes.
Grammar: Countable noun: a dresser, two dressers. In British English, a 'dresser' is often a sideboard for dishes, not clothes.
Patterns
- a chest of drawers
- put clothes in the dresser
She folded her sweaters and put them in the dresser.
The bedroom has a bed, a nightstand, and a dresser.
He left his socks on top of the dresser.
nouncountable
A person who wears clothes in a particular way, especially stylishly.
Grammar: Countable noun; often used with an adjective: a smart dresser, a sharp dresser.
Patterns
- a sharp dresser
- a stylish dresser
- a conservative dresser
He's a sharp dresser who always wears a suit.
She's a casual dresser, preferring jeans and T-shirts.
As a dresser, he is known for his colorful ties.
nouncountablespecialist
A person who helps actors put on their costumes in a theater or film production.
Grammar: Countable noun; often used in the context of theater or film.
Patterns
- work as a dresser
- a costume dresser
The dresser helped the actress change quickly between scenes.
She worked as a dresser in the local theater for years.
The dresser ensured all costumes were ready before the curtain went up.
Word forms
| plural | dressers |
|---|
Common combinations
- chest of drawers
- He bought a new chest of drawers for his clothes.
- sharp dresser
- Everyone notices that he's a sharp dresser.
- put clothes in the dresser
- Please put your clean clothes in the dresser.
- dresser drawer
- The keys are in the top dresser drawer.
Synonyms and how they differ
- chest of drawers
- This is the British term for the same piece of furniture; 'dresser' is more common in American English for clothes storage.
- wardrobe
- A wardrobe is a tall cupboard for hanging clothes, not a set of drawers.
- sideboard
- In British English, a dresser can be a sideboard for dishes, but in American English it is for clothes.
Word family
Commonly confused: dresser or dresser?
dresser vs dresser
In British English, a dresser is often a sideboard for plates and dishes, not a bedroom chest of drawers.
Practice
She keeps her folded T-shirts in the ______.
Choose one answer.
A dresser has drawers for folded clothes. A wardrobe is for hanging clothes, a closet is a small room or cupboard, and a shelf is a flat board for storage.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “dresser”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.