decorated
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of decorated
Explanation
When something is embellished or made more beautiful, it's decorated, like the elaborately decorated cookies you made your parents for their anniversary. Besides things that are ornamented or adorned with decorations, you can also use this adjective for people who are honored, particularly soldiers who have served heroically. A decorated war veteran has received medals, awards, and honors from the military. Decorated soldiers often wear their medals on their uniforms. The Latin root of decorated is decus, "an ornament."
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.
A few days later, rifling through my wallet, I passed a small red-and-gold card decorated with lucky cats and a rising sun.
From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026
The Delevingne sisters decorated the 1955-midcentury property together before handing the keys over to Usher.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026
The exhibit also approaches issues of gender, through the elaborately decorated 1511 lira da braccio, a bowed string instrument of the Renaissance.
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
The house no longer vacant, the front porch was now decorated with hanging baskets of little pink flowers and white wicker furniture.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
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.
