decorate
Americanverb (used with object)
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decorates,
present (3rd person singular)
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decorated,
past participle, past
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decorating
present participle
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to furnish or adorn with something ornamental or becoming; embellish.
to decorate walls with murals.
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to plan and execute the design, furnishings, and ornamentation of the interior of (a house, office, apartment, etc.), especially by selecting colors, fabrics, and style of furniture, by making minor structural changes, etc..
Their house is decorated in French Provincial style.
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to confer distinction upon by a badge, a medal of honor, etc..
to decorate a soldier for valor.
verb
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(tr) to make more attractive by adding ornament, colour, etc
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to paint or wallpaper (a room, house, etc)
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(tr) to confer a mark of distinction, esp a military medal, upon
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(tr) to evaporate a metal film onto (a crystal) in order to display dislocations in structure
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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decoratesimple
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decoratessimple
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have decoratedperfect
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has decoratedperfect
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am decoratingprogressive
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are decoratingprogressive
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is decoratingprogressive
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have been decoratingperfect progressive
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has been decoratingperfect progressive
Past
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decoratedsimple
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had decoratedperfect
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was decoratingprogressive
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were decoratingprogressive
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had been decoratingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of decorate
1375–1425; late Middle English (adj.) < Latin decorātus (past participle of decorāre ), equivalent to decor- (stem of decus ) an ornament, splendor, honor ( see decent) + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
Putting up paintings, stringing up lights, and getting some flowers are all ways to decorate a house. When you decorate, you make things look better or at least more interesting. Even an attractively furnished home can be decorated for a holiday or party. That means you dress up your house to celebrate the special occasion. Decorate is also used to describe certain kinds of success. A famous athlete might decorate a gym with trophies and championship rings. We say a person in the military, like a general, is decorated when he or she is given medals for bravery or other accomplishments.
Vocabulary lists containing decorate
Easter Vocabulary
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Lesson 3
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"Making Faces"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Serge's own artworks, including a distorted Count Duckula and a vintage apothecary cabinet, decorate the kitchen.
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026
Why not decorate all of our college athletes like stock car drivers, covering them head to toe in logos for banks, tech companies, candies, soft drinks, sunscreens, insurers, hardware stores and ultraprocessed snacks?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
The Lauensteins, who spent years scouring architectural salvage sites for items including wrought iron, hardware, lighting and doors to decorate their home, largely stewarded the transformation, with occasional guidance from interior designers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
It was probably commissioned by Bishop Odo of Bayeux -- William's half-brother -- in 1077 to decorate the new cathedral in his hometown, Bayeux, according to the tapestry's home museum.
From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026
“Oh, I brought sugar skulls we can decorate, too!”
From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish
Rather, she takes a plain white bag and decorates it to the max — an “Easter basket of sorts,” as she describes the final product.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 2, 2026
What if Jesse decorates the house with toilet paper?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 27, 2026
He often takes to the field with painted nails, which he decorates to bond with four-year-old daughter Leila.
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2025
But the epiphanic ding! hits her as she’s smoothing a Band-Aid onto her forehead wound, and considers the superhero that decorates it: the Incredible Hulk.
From Salon ● Aug. 19, 2024
He, too, winks at me with his one working eye, and decorates the walls of his quarters with what he calls “the telltale visions of a captain triumphant.”
From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman
The Delevingne sisters decorated the 1955-midcentury property together before handing the keys over to Usher.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026
Cooper, a four-star commander who is one of the most decorated officers in the U.S. military, is a career Navy Surface Warfare Officer who has served in every military theater of operations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
One of them was El Camino Real’s decorated baseball coach, Josh Lienhard, who has guided the team to five City Section championships.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
"Traditionally mills over the centuries are decorated to mark important occasions," Holt added.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
“I’ll let you borrow my rickshaw until tomorrow evening,” the woman said, pointing to the old-fashioned one decorated with advertisements for the shop.
From "Rickshaw Girl" by Mitali Perkins
When I dropped my daughter off at a three-day, two-night sports camp this summer, I was stunned to see other parents—one with a ladder—elaborately decorating the front doors of their campers’ rooms.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
And, most importantly, it encouraged consumers to get creative with other aspects of baking: shaping, frosting and decorating.
From Salon ● Jun. 14, 2026
Department of Veterans Affairs External link, the holiday was established to honor fallen soldiers by decorating their graves with flowers.
From Barron's ● May 25, 2026
In 1953, Angel’s brother Juan opened a burger-and-ice cream stand called the Snow Cap Drive-In, using recycled lumber and decorating every surface with bright colors and jokes.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2026
Strapped to the altar was what looked to be a teenage boy in a white dress, a golden tiara decorating his blond hair.
From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley
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.
