Pretty clothes

[Rachel Adams]

Does "pretty clothes" sound natural?

"My maids dressed me in pretty clothes."

 

[tedmc]

Yes, the adjective is commonly used with clothes.

 

[Rover_KE]

Yes, but 'my maids dressed me' is less natural.

 

[Rachel Adams]

Yes, but 'my maids dressed me' is less natural.

How would you rephrase it?

 

[Rachel Adams]

It's not a matter of rephrasing. It's simply that very few people these days have maids to dress them.

I thought it's wrong grammatically.

 

[emsr2d2]

I thought it's wrong grammatically.

Rover clearly said it is "less natural". If it had been grammatically wrong, he would have said so.

 

[jutfrank]

I think this shows that once again we disagree over what 'natural' means when talking about language use.

I'd say that my maids dressed me is perfectly natural English. How many people have maids to dress them is entirely irrelevant.

 

[emsr2d2]

I recall my postilion being struck by lightning.

Still one of my favourite phrasebook examples, although my Greek phrasebook still wins that competition with "Put my trunk in the corner and let us speak of the war"!

 

[GoesStation]

I never had maids to dress me, but I recall my postilion being struck by lightning.

What an annoyance. Good postilions are so hard to find these days!

 

[Rachel Adams]

I think this shows that once again we disagree over what 'natural' means when talking about language use.

I'd say that my maids dressed me is perfectly natural English. How many people have maids to dress them is entirely irrelevant.

Can "dress up" be also used?

 

[GoesStation]

Can "dress up" be also used?

Have you looked up the phrasal verb dress up?

 

[Rachel Adams]

Have you looked up the phrasal verb dress up?

Yes, I have.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

I thought it's wrong grammatically.

It's grammatical and natural. But I don't know anyone who has a maid to dress her. They probably exist in places like Buckingham Palace.

So the wording isn't unnatural. The act is unnatural, at least for most of us.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Can "dress up" be also used?

No. You can dress without dressing UP.

I'm dressed right now — in blue jeans, a T-shirt, a flannel shirt, and sneakers. So I'm definitely NOT dressed up!

If you don't see the difference, look it up again. Let us know if you still don't get it.

 

[emsr2d2]

When we ask you if you've looked something up (and you have), it's useful if you tell us where you looked, what definitions you found and, ideally, give us a link.

 

[Rachel Adams]

No. You can dress without dressing UP.

I'm dressed right now — in blue jeans, a T-shirt, a flannel shirt, and sneakers. So I'm definitely NOT dressed up!

If you don't see the difference, look it up again. Let us know if you still don't get it.

If I understand correctly, in my original sentence using "dress up" isn't wrong when talking about a formal occasion.