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adorn

verb
\ ə-ˈdȯrn How to pronounce adorn (audio) \
adorned; adorning; adorns

Definition of adorn

transitive verb

1 : to enhance the appearance of especially with beautiful objects adorned the wall with her paintings
2 : to enliven or decorate as if with ornaments people of fashion who adorned the Court
Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about adorn

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Choose the Right Synonym for adorn

adorn, decorate, ornament, embellish, beautify, deck, garnish mean to enhance the appearance of something by adding something unessential. adorn implies an enhancing by something beautiful in itself. a diamond necklace adorned her neck decorate suggests relieving plainness or monotony by adding beauty of color or design. decorate a birthday cake ornament and embellish imply the adding of something extraneous, ornament stressing the heightening or setting off of the original a white house ornamented with green shutters , embellish often stressing the adding of superfluous or adventitious ornament. embellish a page with floral borders beautify adds to embellish a suggestion of counterbalancing plainness or ugliness. will beautify the grounds with flower beds deck implies the addition of something that contributes to gaiety, splendor, or showiness. a house all decked out for Christmas garnish suggests decorating with a small final touch and is used especially in referring to the serving of food. an entrée garnished with parsley

Examples of adorn in a Sentence

Her paintings adorn the walls. the Sultan's tent was richly adorned with thick tapestries and gleaming gold candlesticks

Recent Examples on the Web

 Some collectors traded beer cans connected to the thousands of craft brewers who used complicated art to adorn their cans. — Washington Post, "Brew the years: Beer fans ‘CANvention’ opens in New Mexico," 29 Aug. 2019 Every month, one lucky young man is chosen to be adorned by legions of fans on Twitter. — Gabe Bergado, Teen Vogue, "Twitter’s White Boy of the Month Meme Is a Match Made in Heaven Between Celebrity and Internet Culture," 26 Aug. 2019 That weekend, the league allows players to adorn their cleats with images related to charitable causes. — Chris Tomasson, Twin Cities, "Vikings’ Robert Rodriguez, Ifeadi Odenigbo saddened by shootings back home in El Paso, Dayton," 6 Aug. 2019 There was a time, not so long ago, when people with seemingly good taste got genuinely excited to try rosé-flavored marshmallows and beachgoers all over the country could be seen sporting baseball caps adorned with the image of a glass of pink wine. — Olivia Harrison, refinery29.com, "The Rosé Trend Might Be Over, But Pink Wine Is Far From Dead," 25 July 2019 Actually, there is more than one addition, as a new flag pole flying the American and Blue Star flags has been erected next to the rock bearing the Blue Star plaque, and a garden will soon spring up to adorn the area around the rock and pole. — cleveland.com, "Mayfield Village dedicates Blue Star Marker in honor of all who have served in U.S. armed forces," 16 July 2019 In their day they were used to adorn furniture, vessels, horses’ harnesses, and royal carriages. — National Geographic, "Agatha Christie's adventurous 'second act' plays out in Mesopotamia," 21 Mar. 2019 In one selfie from May 2, Pagourtzis wore a backwards baseball cap adorned with a pink and purple striped pin that is associated with bisexual pride, according to dozens of online retailers. — Ben Collins, NBC News, "Shooting suspect Dimitrios Pagourtzis posted 'Born to Kill' t-shirt," 18 May 2018 The former France international has now touched down in Florence, adorned in a La Viola polo shirt and holding aloft a club scarf, as revealed by the Seria A side on their official Twitter account. — SI.com, "Fiorentina Confirm Franck Ribery's Arrival at the Club Ahead of Two-Year Deal," 21 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'adorn.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of adorn

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for adorn

Middle English aournen, adournen, borrowed from Anglo-French aurner, adourner (with d restored from Latin), going back to Latin adōrnāre "to get ready, prepare, decorate, embellish," from ad- ad- + ōrnāre "to prepare, equip, embellish" — more at ornate

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More Definitions for adorn

adorn

verb
How to pronounce adorn (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of adorn

somewhat formal : to make (someone or something) more attractive by adding something beautiful

See the full definition for adorn in the English Language Learners Dictionary

adorn

verb
\ ə-ˈdȯrn How to pronounce adorn (audio) \
adorned; adorning

Kids Definition of adorn

: to make more attractive by adding something Paintings adorn the walls.

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More from Merriam-Webster on adorn

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with adorn

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for adorn

Spanish Central: Translation of adorn

Nglish: Translation of adorn for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of adorn for Arabic Speakers

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