decorate

verb

dec·o·rate | \ˈde-kə-ˌrāt

decorated; decorating

Definition of decorate

transitive verb

1 : to add honor to decorated commerce with the splendid virtues of honor and loyalty— Geoffrey Household

2 : to furnish with something ornamental decorate a room with artwork decorating the Christmas tree

3 : to award a mark of honor to a soldier decorated for valor highly decorated war veterans

intransitive verb

: to furnish something with ornamentation decorating for the party

Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about decorate

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Choose the Right Synonym for decorate

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 decorate in a Sentence

I always enjoy decorating the Christmas tree. I decorated my apartment in dark colors.

Recent Examples on the Web

Mime’s forest hut boasts an oversize playpen and high chair, and a wall decorated with a child’s drawings, including a large dragon; everything is brightly colored. — Heidi Waleson, WSJ, "‘Siegfried’ Review: Far From Child’s Play," 6 Nov. 2018 Fatosme and Lefèvre decorated the corridors and bedrooms with graffiti taken from the Cours Julien, or creators' district, in town. — Danielle Fox, ELLE Decor, "At the Nhow Marseille Hotel in France, Italian Furniture and Local Grit Lead the Design," 22 Oct. 2018 Roots Long windows filter plenty of natural light into Roots, a welcoming space featuring concrete floors, a wooden bar, benches, tables, and a wall decorated with local art. — Katie Lockhart, Condé Nast Traveler, "11 Best Places For Coffee in Bangkok," 18 Oct. 2018 Paul Newman’s decorated acting career speaks to his influence in Hollywood, but his most impactful achievements had to do with his charity work, according to his daughter. — Jack Wisniewski, Fox News, "Paul Newman's daughter talks about his lasting legacy: 'I miss him so much'," 9 Aug. 2018 Certain male birds decorate their nests with colorful human rubbish. — Katherine J. Wu, Smithsonian, "How Humans Created the Ultimate Superpests," 9 July 2018 Kadir had decorated their apartment for Ruya’s big day. — Maria L. La Ganga, idahostatesman, "Mother of 3-year-old slain in mass stabbing wants justice for daughter: "She is gone."," 3 July 2018 Stacks of split logs in iron racks decorate the interior. — Andy Staples, SI.com, "The Latest Evidence That Nick Saban Lives in His Competitors' Heads," 21 May 2018 One American, apparently the son of Russian or Eastern European immigrants, drafted the truce offering in rough Russian on Knights of Columbus stationery decorated with an American flag. — Michael M. Phillips, WSJ, "The One Time American Troops Fought Russians Was at the End of World War I—and They Lost," 9 Nov. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'decorate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.