adornment

noun

adorn·​ment ə-ˈdȯrn-mənt How to pronounce adornment (audio)
1
: the action of adorning : the state of being adorned
2
: something that adorns

Examples of adornment in a Sentence

the adornment of the walls with her paintings Her room doesn't have any unnecessary adornments. The entrance to the building has little adornment.
Recent Examples on the Web From twinkling lights to charming ornaments and everything in between, these holiday adornments promise to transform your home into a winter wonderland. Matthew Parker, Rolling Stone, 8 Nov. 2023 Originally worn as a sign of modesty and a symbol of good luck, the wedding day adornment is now seen by many brides as a means of adding an ethereal note to their nuptial ensemble. Shelby Wax, Vogue, 2 Nov. 2023 Mulvaney, who presented an award during the show and is nominated for breakout creator, wore a ruby red minidress designed with a center cutout topped with large bow adornment. David Chiu, Peoplemag, 28 Aug. 2023 Sips in Barcelona’s Eixample neighborhood specializes in craft cocktail theater, featuring lots of smoke and edible clouds, and geometric glassware topped with idiosyncratic adornments. Li Goldstein, Bon Appétit, 17 Oct. 2023 The demo finds the song stripped of much of the adornment from the album version — including Tina Turner and the Ikettes’ vocals on the chorus — leaving only the basic instrumentation, and Zappa’s somehow more deranged recitation of the verses. Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 13 Oct. 2023 For this workshop, Chamberlin brought straw flowers, roses, yarrow, thistle, statice and other delicate adornments. Roxana Popescu, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Oct. 2023 Whatever the case, Skelly’s star has thoroughly blasted through the usual limitations of plastic pumpkins, Styrofoam grave markers and other All Hallows adornments. Rachel Kurzius, Washington Post, 5 Oct. 2023 Mums are elaborate adornments typically worn by female students in a tradition across the South and Midwest that goes back more than a century. Rachel Sherman, New York Times, 30 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'adornment.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English adornement, borrowed from Anglo-French aurnement, from aurner, adourner "to adorn" + -ment -ment

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of adornment was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near adornment

Cite this Entry

“Adornment.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adornment. Accessed 1 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

adornment

noun
adorn·​ment ə-ˈdȯrn-mənt How to pronounce adornment (audio)
1
: the action of adorning : the state of being adorned
2
: something that adorns

More from Merriam-Webster on adornment

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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