adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of decorative
Explanation
Things that are decorative have no purpose except to look pretty. Blueberry bushes produce fruit that humans and birds can eat, while boxwood shrubs are purely decorative. The fake buttons on your winter coat are just decorative — then again, your high heeled shoes are more decorative than useful, and your jewelry and makeup is also decorative. The knickknacks on your mantel, the wreath on your front door, and the creepy doll collection in your living room are all decorative as well. These things dress up or ornament your home, and decorative comes from the Latin root decorare, "to decorate, adorn, or beautify."
Vocabulary lists containing decorative
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.
He and his wife employ over a dozen people, including their four daughters, making decorative banners for clients as far away as South Korea and Japan.
From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026
Novack’s tip if you can’t find someone who wants your piano: Hire an artist to take it apart and turn it into something new, either furniture or decorative art.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026
Their tropical light and decorative symmetry hold opposites, before and after the Fall, in a kind of suspended equilibrium.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
Cooper said some developments had even featured "fake" weep vents, where decorative plastic pieces had been fitted instead of functioning openings.
From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2026
There were one or two fluffy, almost decorative clouds.
From "Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story" by Nora Raleigh Baskin
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
