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.
In a trip in November 2013 to Vincenzo Caffarella, a decorative arts and antiques shop in London, £170,000 was allegedly spent on a "vast amount of property" including Venetian lamps and vases.
From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026
Michele Sawers, left stands with Beth Penn, right, while giving her a decorative owl.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2026
Whether it’s the birthday bouquet we buy, the roses we plant, the fragrances we use, we tend to think of flowers as decorative add-ons.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026
Meanwhile, I inherited a mortgage, along with several guns, broken exercise equipment, cabinets full of expired pills and 34 decorative fish.
From Salon • Mar. 24, 2026
I watch as he picks up a decorative bowl from the dining room table and moves toward the front door.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
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.
