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

The main room of the clubhouse was decorated in a haze of pink, with hundreds of balloons of all colors, from hot to soft pink. — Jane Napier Neely, latimes.com, "The Valley Line: Debutante fashion show takes to the runway with pink theme," 3 June 2019 Even the buttons, which were made by Johnny Nelson Jewelry, were decorated with the faces of folks from these communities. — Abby Gardner, Glamour, "Here Are All the Fashion References You Might Have Missed from the 2019 Met Gala," 7 May 2019 He was decorated for bravery with France’s National Order of the Legion of Honor. — Seattle Times Staff & News Services, The Seattle Times, "This week’s passages," 29 Mar. 2019 The main house was decorated with the help of Woolf’s sister, the painter and decorator Vanessa Bell, who lived 6 miles away. — WSJ, "How Virginia Woolf Decorated Her Room of One's Own," 5 Mar. 2019 Make the frosting and decorate: Beat butter and cream cheese on low speed with an electric mixer until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. — Anna Helm Baxter, Country Living, "Santa Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting," 7 Dec. 2018 Parker, who frequents the Taco Bell in Carbondale, Ill., every Tuesday and Friday, commemorated the milestone in the same fast-food restaurant, which was decorated with flowers, balloons and a message on the marquee sign. — Kaitlyn Schallhorn, Fox News, "Illinois woman chooses Taco Bell for 101st birthday, is 'hooked' on Nacho Fries," 15 Aug. 2018 At the center of the show is a large glass case displaying 10 Japanese kimonos, recent gifts of collector Erik Jacobsen, each decorated with images ingeniously incorporating military and nationalistic themes. — Charles Desmarais, San Francisco Chronicle, "Dressed to kill: War propaganda kimonos on view at the de Young," 11 May 2018 The club also decorates the city gazebo during the holidays with greens, bows and pinecones. — Linda Gandee/special To Cleveland.com, cleveland.com, "Avon Garden Club readies for annual plant sale with lovingly cared for plants and expert advice," 7 May 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.