sprucing (up)

verb

present participle of spruce (up)
as in trimming
to make neat hurriedly sprucing up the hotel dining room before the breakfast crowd began showing up

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for sprucing (up)
  1. trimming
  2. organizing
  3. arranging
Verb
  • Public schools would seem an odd fit for private equity, which is typically premised on a strategy of slashing costs, trimming head count, and finding the right moment to sell up.
    — Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 12 Nov. 2026
  • Limiting the number of projects included or trimming back some of the proposals to speed permitting might have kicked up less dust.
    — Andrew Graham, Sacbee.com, 12 Nov. 2026
Definition of trimming
Verb
  • The Colorado Fallen Hero Foundation, which is organizing the service, is a non-profit that provides support to local law enforcement agencies and families when an officer is killed in the line of duty.
    — Noelle Phillips, Denver Post, 11 Nov. 2026
  • The conservative Popular Party and far-right Vox, which already govern in some parts of Spain, accuse the unions of organizing the protests to keep the current government in power.
    — Natalie Feary, CNBC, 11 Nov. 2026
Definition of organizing
Verb
  • The painting was only recently revealed to the family at the end of her aunt's life when arranging her affairs.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 7 Nov. 2026
  • His organization, Protect Paws, has reportedly helped more than 1,500 stray dogs by arranging for medical treatment, vaccinations and reflective collars.
    — Kamala Thiagarajan, NPR, 7 Nov. 2026
Definition of arranging
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

sprucing
sprucing (up)
sprung
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Cite this Entry

“Sprucing (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sprucing%20%28up%29. Accessed 14 Nov. 2026.

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