There are several sides to this life-long debate. One is that the side dish is regarded as stuffing if it’s used to stuff inside a turkey, and dressing if it’s made in a separate baking dish. Another school of thought is that the name reference is regional. In the south, it is called a “dressing,” while up north, it is referred to as “stuffing.”  And yet another answer lies in bread. As in, dressing is made with cornbread and stuffing is made with other breads, like sourdough, Italian loaf, etc.