adorn

verb

ə-ˈdȯrn 

adorned; adorning; adorns

transitive verb

1

: to enhance the appearance of especially with beautiful objects

adorned the wall with her paintings

2

: to enliven or decorate as if with ornaments

people of fashion who adorned the Court

Synonyms of adorn

• decorate

Choose the Right Synonym for adorn

adorn, decorate, ornament, embellish, beautify, deck, garnish mean to enhance the appearance of something by adding something unessential.

adorn implies an enhancing by something beautiful in itself.

a diamond necklace adorned her neck

decorate suggests relieving plainness or monotony by adding beauty of color or design.

decorate a birthday cake

ornament and embellish imply the adding of something extraneous, ornament stressing the heightening or setting off of the original,

a white house ornamented with green shutters

embellish often stressing the adding of superfluous or adventitious ornament.

embellish a page with floral borders

beautify adds to embellish a suggestion of counterbalancing plainness or ugliness.

will beautify the grounds with flower beds

deck implies the addition of something that contributes to gaiety, splendor, or showiness.

a house all decked out for Christmas

garnish suggests decorating with a small final touch and is used especially in referring to the serving of food.

an entrée garnished with parsley

Examples of adorn in a Sentence

Her paintings adorn the walls.

the Sultan's tent was richly adorned with thick tapestries and gleaming gold candlesticks

Recent Examples on the Web

The white button-down and black mini skirt combination is a classic pairing that's taken to the next level with rose-adorning pumps and bright red ankle socks. — Ariel Bielsky, InStyle, 24 June 2026

The British brand’s suiting channeled dapper English luxury with dedicated cigar pockets on outerwear, along with mismatched velvet slippers adorned with playing card emblems. — Scarlett Conlon, CNN Money, 24 June 2026

Some of my fondest memories with her take place in the kitchen, which was adorned with timeless decor, elegant dinnerware, and, like that of many grandmothers, vintage Tupperware. — Alicia Geigel, Southern Living, 23 June 2026

It is adorned with leather armchairs by Oscar Niemeyer, vintage carpets, a midcentury Kalmar glass chandelier, mirrors by Gio Ponti, and a red desk by Carlo Scarpa, resulting in a warm, cozy feel throughout. — Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 22 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English aournen, adournen, borrowed from Anglo-French aurner, adourner (with d restored from Latin), going back to Latin adōrnāre "to get ready, prepare, decorate, embellish," from ad- ad- + ōrnāre "to prepare, equip, embellish" — more at ornate

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for adorn

• airborne
• blackthorn
• broomcorn
• buckhorn
• buckthorn
• careworn
• firstborn
• foodborne
• forborne
• forewarn
• forlorn
• forsworn

Kids Definition

adorn

verb

ə-ˈdȯrn 

: to enhance the appearance of with ornaments