Dressing is a mixture you put on salad, usually made from oil, vinegar, and various seasonings. When you pour ranch dressing over lettuce or drizzle vinaigrette on spinach, you're adding flavor and moisture to vegetables that might otherwise taste plain. Some dressings are creamy, like Caesar or blue cheese, while others are thinner and tangier, like Italian dressing or balsamic vinaigrette.

The word also means the act of putting on clothes. When you get dressed in the morning, you're dressing yourself. Parents help young children with dressing until they learn to do it independently. A dressing room is where actors change costumes or where shoppers try on clothes before buying them.

In medicine, a dressing is a protective covering placed over a wound. Nurses apply sterile dressings to cuts or surgical incisions to keep them clean and help them heal. These medical dressings might be simple bandages or more complex wrappings with ointment.

Finally, dressing is the savory, breadlike mixture served as a side dish at Thanksgiving and other holiday meals. Some families call it stuffing when it's cooked inside the turkey, and dressing when it's baked separately in a pan, though people use both words differently depending on where they grew up.