gussying up

verb

present participle of gussy up
as in decorating
to make more attractive by adding something that is beautiful or becoming gone are the days when the high school prom was held in the gym, which had been gussied up for the occasion

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for gussying up
  1. decorating
  2. adorning
  3. doing up
  4. draping
Verb
  • Fairytale was the theme for Chanel — decorating a faux salon at the Grand Palais with giant vines and surreal flowers, inspired by both Jack and the Beanstalk and the 1990s movie Jumanji.
    — Laure Guilbault, Vogue, 10 July 2026
  • The couple reportedly transformed Madison Square Garden into a forest, decorating the venue with real trees.
    — Hannah Malach, InStyle, 8 July 2026
Definition of decorating
Verb
  • The timing of this stellar event is especially striking given that this aurora forecast also happens to coincide with the rising of the full Strawberry Moon, adorning the night sky Monday evening.
    — Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 29 June 2026
  • Fans have also indulged in a more modern Scottish tradition, adorning statues in both cities with traffic cones.
    — Elmira Aliieva, NBC news, 27 June 2026
Definition of adorning
Verb
  • What in the world are those overgrown basketballs doing up there?
    — Rui Bo, The Conversation, 18 May 2026
  • Wednesday’s practice started with some of the players doing up-downs after forgetting equipment.
    — Anthony Solorzano, Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2026
Definition of doing up
Verb
  • But Sportman said more must be done, including draping the area with a tarp to prevent more water from entering the hole, hastening more erosion.
    — Kenneth R. Gosselin, Hartford Courant, 5 July 2026
  • Bunting arranged this way is appropriate for covering a speaker’s desk, draping the front of a platform or general decoration.
    — Sacbee.com, Sacbee.com, 3 July 2026
Definition of draping
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

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gussying up
gussy up
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Cite this Entry

“Gussying up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gussying%20up. Accessed 13 Jul. 2026.

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