window dressing
noun
1
: the display of merchandise in a retail store window
2
a
: the act or an instance of making something appear deceptively attractive or favorable
b
: something used to create a deceptively favorable or attractive impression
window dresser
noun
Synonyms of window dressing
Examples of window dressing in a Sentence
These changes are being made for a good reason. They're not just window dressing.
the crime-does-not-pay moralizing is just window dressing for nasty hard-boiled stories
Recent Examples on the Web
Artistic Vision Put to Work Cohen’s artistic vision isn’t just aesthetic window dressing.
—
Matthew Kayser, USA Today, 12 Dec. 2025
When window dressing takes away from that central conceit, what’s the point?
—Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 9 Dec. 2025
Women are treated like commodities, mere inferior window dressing that are undeserving of becoming literate.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 3 Dec. 2025
Events like these aren’t window dressing—they’re deal flow engines.
—Sindhya Valloppillil, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for window dressing
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Matthew Kayser, USA Today, 12 Dec. 2025
When window dressing takes away from that central conceit, what’s the point?
—Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 9 Dec. 2025
Women are treated like commodities, mere inferior window dressing that are undeserving of becoming literate.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 3 Dec. 2025
Events like these aren’t window dressing—they’re deal flow engines.
—Sindhya Valloppillil, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for window dressing
Cite this Entry
“Window dressing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/window%20dressing. Accessed 14 Dec. 2025.
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