upholster
Americanverb (used with object)
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to provide (chairs, sofas, etc.) with coverings, cushions, stuffing, springs, etc.
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to furnish (an interior) with hangings, curtains, carpets, or the like.
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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has upholsteredperfect 3rd person singular
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have upholsteredperfect
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are upholsteringprogressive
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have been upholsteringperfect progressive
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am upholsteringprogressive 1st person singular
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has been upholsteringperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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is upholsteringprogressive 3rd person singular
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upholsterssingular 3rd person
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upholsteringparticiple
Past
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had upholsteredperfect
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had been upholsteringperfect progressive
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were upholsteringprogressive plural
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upholsteredsimple
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was upholsteringprogressive singular
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upholsteredparticiple
Future
Etymology
Origin of upholster
1850–55, back formation from upholsterer
Explanation
To upholster is to cover a piece of furniture with fabric and soft padding. If your brother's cat scratches up your sofa, you may want to upholster it — but it's probably wise to wait until your brother and Mr. Whiskers move out. Upholstery is everything that covers your couches, love seats, and soft chairs, from the springs to the velvet cushions. The act of making these furniture coverings is also upholstery, and when you do it, you upholster. The word for the expert who specializes in this, upholsterer, came first, from the Middle English upholden, "to repair."
Vocabulary lists containing upholster
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
