window dressing

noun

1

: the display of merchandise in a retail store window

2

a

: the act or an instance of making something appear deceptively attractive or favorable

b

: something used to create a deceptively favorable or attractive impression

window-dress

ˈwin-dō-ˌdres 

transitive verb

window dresser noun

Synonyms

• facade
• façade

Examples of window dressing in a Sentence

These changes are being made for a good reason. They're not just window dressing.

the crime-does-not-pay moralizing is just window dressing for nasty hard-boiled stories

Recent Examples on the Web

Events like these aren’t window dressing—they’re deal flow engines. —Sindhya Valloppillil, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025

To recreate the rickety window dressing, construct a frame of white lattice strips, cut boards from veneer paneling, then staple them at angles into the frame. —Maria Sabella, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Sep. 2025

Whether inside posh beachside resorts or cool urban havens, these stores are not merely window dressing. —Maya Kachroo-Levine, Travel + Leisure, 14 Sep. 2025

The series is still going strong thanks to numerous sequels and a spinoff, wading into such over-the-top territory that the initial street racing conceit is now little more than window dressing. —Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 18 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1850, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for window dressing

• acquiescing
• coalescing
• convalescing
• dispossessing
• prepossessing
• reassessing
• accessing
• addressing
• assessing
• caressing
• compressing
• confessing