Dress \Dress\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dressedor Drest; p. pr. & vb. n. Dressing.]

[OF. drecier to make straight, raise, set up, prepare, arrange, F. dresser. (assumed) LL. directiare, fr. L. dirigere, directum, to direct; dis- + regere to rule. See Right, and cf. Address, Adroit, Direct, Dirge.]

1. To direct; to put right or straight; to regulate; to order. [Obs.]

At all times thou shalt bless God and pray Him to dress thy ways. --Chaucer.

Note: Dress is used reflexively in Old English, in sense of ``to direct one's step; to address one's self.''

To Grisild again will I me dresse. --Chaucer.

2. (Mil.) To arrange in exact continuity of line, as soldiers; commonly to adjust to a straight line and at proper distance; to align; as, to dress the ranks.

3. (Med.) To treat methodically with remedies, bandages, or curative appliances, as a sore, an ulcer, a wound, or a wounded or diseased part.

4. To adjust; to put in good order; to arrange; specifically:
   (a) To prepare for use; to fit for any use; to render suitable for an intended purpose; to get ready; as, to dress a slain animal; to dress meat; to dress leather or cloth; to dress or trim a lamp; to dress a garden; to dress a horse, by currying and rubbing; to dress grain, by cleansing it; in mining and metallurgy, to dress ores, by sorting and separating them.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)