ornament
Americannoun
-
ornaments
plural
-
an accessory, article, or detail used to beautify the appearance of something to which it is added or of which it is a part.
architectural ornaments.
- Synonyms:
- embellishment
-
a system, category, or style of such objects or features; ornamentation.
a book on Gothic ornament.
-
any adornment or means of adornment.
- Synonyms:
- decoration
-
a person or thing that adds to the credit or glory of a society, era, etc.
-
the act of adorning.
- Synonyms:
- decoration
-
the state of being adorned.
-
mere outward display.
a speech more of ornament than of ideas.
-
Chiefly Ecclesiastical. any accessory, adjunct, or equipment.
-
Music. a tone or group of tones applied as decoration to a principal melodic tone.
verb (used with object)
-
ornaments,
present (3rd person singular)
-
ornamented,
past participle, past
-
ornamenting
present participle
noun
-
anything that enhances the appearance of a person or thing
-
decorations collectively
she was totally without ornament
-
a small decorative object
-
something regarded as a source of pride or beauty
-
music any of several decorations, such as the trill, mordent, etc, occurring chiefly as improvised embellishments in baroque music
verb
-
to decorate with or as if with ornaments
-
to serve as an ornament to
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
ornamentationnoun
-
ornamenternoun
-
superornamentnoun
-
overornamentverb (used with object)
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reornamentverb (used with object)
-
superornamentverb (used with object)
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
ornamentsimple
-
ornamentssimple
-
have ornamentedperfect
-
has ornamentedperfect
-
am ornamentingprogressive
-
are ornamentingprogressive
-
is ornamentingprogressive
-
have been ornamentingperfect progressive
-
has been ornamentingperfect progressive
Past
-
ornamentedsimple
-
had ornamentedperfect
-
was ornamentingprogressive
-
were ornamentingprogressive
-
had been ornamentingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ornament
1175–1225; < Latin ornāmentum equipment, ornament, equivalent to ornā ( re ) to equip + -mentum -ment; replacing Middle English ornement < Old French < Latin, as above
Explanation
An ornament is a decoration. You can also ornament something by making it more beautiful or festive. The most common use of ornament is probably in Christmas ornaments, which decorate a tree. Similarly, any ornament makes something prettier, flashier, or more festive. When you ornament something, you're beautifying, embellishing, or adorning it. Women ornament themselves with makeup. Men ornament themselves with face paint at football games. People ornament their offices with pictures of their families. Different cultures have their own ways of ornamenting themselves and their homes. If something looks boring, why not ornament it?
Vocabulary lists containing ornament
"Macbeth": Act 1 Scene 7
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for November 26–December 2, 2022
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Unit 4, Whole-Class Learning
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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:
The most meaningful one for her was an ornament workshop attended by several victims of the 2025 Los Angeles wildfires.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026
The traditional three-pointed-star hood ornament is reduced to a mere outcropping in a sea of monograms.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
But, when Alison and Darren Unsted moved in next door in 2022, they decided the land was actually theirs, removed the plants and replaced them with the outdoor ornament.
From BBC ● Mar. 8, 2026
In San Francisco, Anthropic fans wielded brightly colored sidewalk chalk to ornament the pavement outside of the company’s office with messages of thanks, laudatories such as “You are patriots” and references to Nelson Mandela.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 3, 2026
They were followed by a wobbly-legged youngster that looked as fragile as a Christmas ornament.
From "Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen
Saleh sometimes leads painting workshops where participants can decorate items like ornaments and lampshades.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026
Fure said Kingston Cemetery, which "should be a place of natural peace, dignity, and reflection", was now home to cellophane wrappers, plastic plant pots, broken ornaments, artificial flowers, windmills and litter.
From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2026
In Mr. Perl-Rosenthal’s account, these speeches were not mere ornaments but a kind of public philosophy, performed aloud.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
Bags of trash, broken Christmas ornaments, useless trinkets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 22, 2026
Most of the bones had been taken away to make ornaments, but ribs were still there, half- buried in the sand.
From "Island of the Blue Dolphins" by Scott O'Dell
The wing patterns, front and back, are centered on individual sheets, themselves screen printed to create standardized forms for specimen information and further ornamented with spatter-printed reliefs of butterflies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 10, 2026
The show begins with an extensive selection of luxury astrolabes, a technical instrument of engraved and ornamented metal plates and dials used for timekeeping, astronomy and navigation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 22, 2024
The title track opens the bilingual album, launching with RM repeating the album’s title over and over again in a deep, almost militaristic cadence — before exploding into asymmetrical production ornamented by his gothic baritone.
From Seattle Times ● May 24, 2024
Crowds of 20-somethings spilled out of the homey restaurant in Manhattan’s Koreatown, where steam billowed from stone bowls of soondubu jigae in a dining room ornamented with paper lanterns and musical instruments.
From New York Times ● Feb. 5, 2024
Wide white wings ornamented Ser Balon's greathelm, and black and white swans fought on his shield.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
The mezzo-soprano Hannah Ludwig, as Rosina, went perhaps a step too far in ornamenting her defining aria, “Una voce poco fa.”
From New York Times ● Jul. 28, 2021
When ornamenting the glass after the beverage is assembled, Thomas wrote, “It is necessary to display some taste.”
From The New Yorker ● Sep. 2, 2016
I wandered in behind a truck spraying water to suppress the dust and soon encountered Jim Holbrook, 65, who was ornamenting his English bulldog with sunglasses and a tiara of devil’s horns.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 30, 2015
Borders can be used in other unexpected ways, too, from edging flat picture frames and ornamenting mats to trimming stair treads and pelmets.
From Architectural Digest ● Aug. 8, 2014
Otto reproduced a number of the tattoos ornamenting the subject’s overmuscled chest, arms, and small and calloused but girlish hands.
From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote
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.
