A Word A Day : Embellish



Sunday, 10th February 2008 : Today's Word is ...

Embellish



( Transitive Verb )



Past and past participle : embellished
Present participle : embellishing
3rd person present singular : embellishes




Pronunciation : em-béll-ish


Definition:


1. to increase the beauty of something by adding ornaments or decorations

2. to make an account or description more interesting by inventing or exaggerating details

3. to add extra notes, accents, or trills to a melody to make it more beautiful or interesting

4. to beautify something

5. To endow with beauty and elegance by way of a notable addition


Etymology:


14th century - Old French embelliss - stem of embellir - make beautiful - bel - beautiful - Latin bellus


Synonyms


decorate, adorn, embroider, beautify, ornament, exaggerate, elaborate, overdo, aggrandize, enhance, enlarge, embroider, gild

Gild means to decorate with gold leaf or liquid gold.

Guild is a formal association of people with similar interests.


Antonyms


denude, simplify, deface, disfigure, mar, spoil, uglify


Contextual Examples:


• It is easy to embellish the pillars and insert beams in a home but hard to get the huai tree to grow.

• He presented a fanciful account that embellishes the true story.

• The young girl is lovely and her tears only embellish her.


Related Words:


embellisher : Noun

embellishment : Noun


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