1

festoon

noun fes·toon \ fe-ˈstün \

|Updated on: 16 Aug 2018

Examples: festoon in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of festoon

1 : a decorative chain or strip hanging between two points

walls decorated with festoons of flowers

2 : a carved, molded, or painted ornament representing a decorative chain

Around the mirror were carved festoons of grapevines.

See festoon defined for English-language learners

See festoon defined for kids

festoon was our Word of the Day on 01/03/2013. Hear the podcast!

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Recent Examples of festoon from the Web

Five minutes after beer became legal at midnight, a big truck, gay with festoons, rumbled to the service entrance of the White house, bearing two cases—a brewer’s gift to the president.

— sandiegouniontribune.com, "April 7 1933: New Beer's Day," 7 Apr. 2018
Inside the Little A'Le'Inn, pictures of UFO sightings, alien masks and military memorabilia decorate, festoon, cover and otherwise dominate the walls and ceiling.

— trevor hughes, USA TODAY, "Hunting for Area 51's aliens along Nevada's Extraterrestrial Highway," 29 Mar. 2018
Rustic figures The cave had collapsed some years earlier, but that didn’t obscure the rustic figures of animals, fish and humans in daubs of black, white and red that festoon the entry wall.

— brian j. cantwell, The Seattle Times, "From Loreto, 3 day-trip adventures in Baja’s high desert," 31 May 2017
Graffiti bearing the team's red dragons logo festoons the outside of the old stand, which is adorned with littered stairwells and poured cement with all the charm of an old prison.

— motez bishara, CNN, "Champions League final 2017: Zinedine Zidane's incredible journey from Cannes to Cardiff," 1 June 2017
Rustic figures The cave had collapsed some years earlier, but that didn’t obscure the rustic figures of animals, fish and humans in daubs of black, white and red that festoon the entry wall.

— brian j. cantwell, The Seattle Times, "From Loreto, 3 day-trip adventures in Baja’s high desert," 31 May 2017
In December, the council approved the design for the street, including a portion of the road ordained with overhead festoon lights.

— ryan gillespie, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Maitland moves forward in reshaping downtown," 27 June 2017

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

Did You Know?

Festoon can also be a verb that is used as a synonym of "decorate" or "adorn" (as in "the room was festooned with streamers and balloons"). The verb "festoon," which first appeared in the late 1700s, comes from the noun "festoon," which appeared over 100 years earlier. "Festoon" traces back (by way of French and Italian) to Latin festa, the plural of festum, meaning "festival." "Festa" is also an ancestor of the English noun "feast."

Origin and Etymology of festoon

French feston, from Italian festone, from festa festival, from Latin — more at feast

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1630

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

2

festoon

verb

Definition of festoon

festooned; festooning; festoons

transitive verb

1 : to hang or form festoons on

2 : to shape into festoons

3 : decorate, adorn; also : cover 4b

See festoon defined for English-language learners

Examples of festoon in a Sentence

We festooned the halls with leaves and white lights.
The balcony is festooned in ivy.
His office is festooned with newspaper clippings.

Recent Examples of festoon from the Web

The front of his Ballard & Parker Service Center was festooned with Trump banners, but Parker laughed when asked about the Red Hen incident.

— gregory s. schneider, Washington Post, "The story must be told.," 26 June 2018
City streets are festooned with flags, banners and billboards of Erdogan and the AKP, far outnumbering the other candidates' posters.

— elena becatoros and zeynep bilginsoy, Fox News, "Turkey heads to landmark presidential, parliamentary vote," 22 June 2018
In one picture, the 40-year-old designer poses on a truly impressive installation of giant books festooned in green and blue balloons, offering a peek at her growing baby bump (and another enviable maternity look).

— taysha murtaugh, Country Living, "Pregnant Joanna Gaines Celebrates Her Fifth Child With the Cutest Baby Shower Ever," 11 June 2018
For the evening’s festivities, the rows of chairs had been replaced by round tables, and the stage was festooned in twinkling lights.

— A-LIST, "Social Light: Inside The Old Vic Theatre’s Bicentenary Gala," 15 May 2018
Seemingly overnight, nearly every local establishment had been festooned with balloons and streamers, bunting and flags.

— candace rose rardon, Longreads, "The Country Where Fútbol Comes First," 10 July 2018
But before the bars and hotels festooned with tiki decor were torn down, Hrnjak had discovered them.

— pam kragen, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Escondido's influential tiki man 'Bosko' is subject of new film," 8 July 2018
Outside, the multi-level deck and patio is festooned with flowering planters and railroad-themed accents.

— philip potempa, Daily Southtown, "Guide to outdoor dining in Chicago suburbs: Flossmoor Station and Brewery," 7 July 2018
All of this can cast a shadow on holiday events characterized by American flag–festooned swimwear and fireworks.

— bridget read, Vogue, "Celebrating America When You’re Feeling Less Than Patriotic," 4 July 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of festoon

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1765

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

festoon Synonyms

Synonyms

adorn, array, beautify, bedeck, bedizen, blazon, caparison, deck, decorate, do, do up, doll up, drape, dress, embellish, emblaze, emboss, enrich, fancify, fancy up, garnish, glitz (up), grace, gussy up, ornament, pretty (up), trim;

Antonyms

blemish, deface, disfigure, mar, scar, spoil;

Near Antonyms

simplify, streamline;

bare, denude, dismantle, display, divest, expose, reveal, strip, uncover;

Related Words

accessorize, dress up, trap, trick (out);

brighten, freshen, smarten, spruce (up);

braid, embroider, feather, figure, filigree, fillet, flounce, frill, fringe, furbelow, garland, hang, lace, ribbon, swag, wreathe;

appliqué, gild, paint;

FESTOON Defined for English Language Learners

festoon

noun

Definition of festoon for English Language Learners

: a long chain or strip of something (such as flowers or cloth) that is hung as a decoration

festoon

verb

Definition of festoon for English Language Learners

: to cover or decorate (something) with many small objects, pieces of paper, etc.

FESTOON Defined for Kids

1

festoon

noun fes·toon \ fe-ˈstün \

Definition of festoon for Students

: a chain or strip hanging between two points as decoration

2

festoon

verb

Definition of festoon for Students

festooned; festooning

: to hang or form festoons or other decorations on

Learn More about festoon

See words that rhyme with festoon Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for festoon Spanish Central: Translation of festoon Nglish: Translation of festoon for Spanish speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about festoon

Seen and Heard

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WORD OF THE DAY

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excessive admiration or flattery

BROWSE DICTIONARY

festivity

festivous

festoon

festoon cloud

festoon drier

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