 Confusing words in English. The difference between dress, get dressed, and dress up. Dress, the noun, is a piece of clothing that women wear. In the picture, she's wearing a red dress. Dressed, an adjective, means wearing. In this picture, he's dressed in jeans and a yellow shirt. Get dressed, the verb means to put on your clothes. In the morning, after you wake up, you take a shower and get dressed. You can use both dressed and get dressed for both men and women. Dress up means to wear nicer clothes than usual. These teenagers are dressed up for a banquet or a dance. You can also use dress up plus as for costumes. In this picture, he's dressed up as Superman. Visit espressoenglish.net for more English tips, English e-books, and English learning courses.