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.
PARIS—Zinédine Zidane, one of the most decorated coaches in European soccer and greatest players of his generation, had sat on the sidelines for five years, waiting for precisely this job.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
It stood outside a brick six-flat, also fittingly painted blue, and decorated with a few stickers: “Protect Native Plants,” a rocket ship from a regional space camp, several iridescent birds.
From Salon ● Jul. 28, 2026
The results could give archaeologists a powerful new way to reconstruct when people entered decorated caves, made paintings, and returned to alter or add to them.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 28, 2026
“It looked like a UPS truck in here. I mean, look at me,” she adds, fluffing the ruffles of her Accidente Con Flores dress, her intricately manicured fingers decorated with colorful Zuni Toons rings.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
Another polyester dress, this one in marshmallow white, sauntered down the aisle, topped with a ginormous hat decorated with a pink bouquet around the brim.
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.
