Vocabulary in context
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Embellish
To decorate or add details to something to make it more attractive; also used to mean exaggerating or embellishing a story.
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Imagine This
The embalmer has to put makeup on the dead bodies to make them look good for the funeral service.
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Sounds Like
em-BELL-ish
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Looks Like
Embalm (preserve a corpse or dead body)
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Remember This
The root bell- means beautiful; embellish literally means to make more beautiful by adding details.
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Other Forms
Embellishmentnoun
Embellishernoun
Embellishedadjective
Embellishingverb
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Connect With
decorate, adorn, ornament, beautify, garnish
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Note
Use embellish for decoration or elaboration; avoid using it when you mean remove or simplify decoration—those are not its senses. Also avoid confusing with embal (to preserve a body).
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Study Deeper
Examples
- The designer embellished the gown with beads and embroidery.
- The author sometimes embellishes the memoir with vivid anecdotes to engage readers.
Synonyms
decorateadornornamentbeautifyenhance
Antonyms
deglamorizeunadornsimplify
Etymology
From Old French embelir 'to beautify', from Latin bellus 'pretty', with the prefix em- (to cause to).
Mnemonic
EM-BELL-ISH: Think of attaching bells or other ornaments to make something more beautiful.
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Similar Words
Related words and words with the same part of speech.
Adorn
verbTo add beauty or decoration to something.
Abandon
verbTo give up completely, to desert or leave behind, or to relinquish a claim, plan, or responsibility.
Abate
verbTo decrease in amount or intensity; to reduce or end something.
Abolish
verbTo formally end or repeal a system, practice, or institution; to officially put an end to something established.
Abridge
verbTo shorten (a text, speech, or other work) by omitting parts; to condense.
Abscond
verbTo depart secretly or flee, especially to avoid detection or arrest.
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