embellish

1 to add to the interest of by including made-up details the story of the comic marriage proposal was embellished as it passed from one generation to the next in the family Synonyms color, elaborate (on), embroider, exaggerate, hyperbolize, magnify, pad, stretchRelated Words dress up, gussy up; amplify, enhance, enlarge (on or upon), expand, flesh (out); fudge, hedge; overdo, overdraw, overemphasize, overplay, overstate; emphasize, play up, stress; caricature; satirizeNear Antonyms belittle, minimize, play down, understate

2 to make more attractive by adding something that is beautiful or becoming the walls of the French restaurant are embellished with scenes of Parisian life Synonyms adorn, array, beautify, bedeck, bedizen, blazon, caparison, deck, do, doll up, do up, drape, dress, decorate, emblaze, emboss, enrich, fancify, fancy up, festoon, garnish, glitz (up), grace, gussy up, ornament, pretty (up), trimRelated Words accessorize, dress up, trap, trick (out); brighten, freshen, smarten, spruce (up); boss, chase; braid, embroider, feather, figure, filigree, fillet, flounce, frill, fringe, furbelow, garland, hang, lace, ribbon, swag, wreathe; appliqué, gild, paint; diamond, gem, impearl, jewel, pearl; redecorate, redoNear Antonyms simplify, streamline; bare, denude, dismantle, display, divest, expose, reveal, strip, uncover; uglifyAntonyms blemish, deface, disfigure, mar, scar, spoil