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embellish
To embellish is defined as to make something fancier by decorating it, or to exaggerate or add details to a story to make it more exciting or interesting.
(verb)- An example of embellish is when you add fringe to a skirt to make the skirt fancier.
- An example of embellish is when you exaggerate about the size of the fish you caught to make your fishing story more interesting.
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See embellish in Webster's New World College Dictionary
transitive verb
- to decorate or improve by adding detail; ornament; adorn
- to add grace notes, syncopated accents, trills, etc. to (a melody)
- to improve (an account or report) by adding details, often of a fictitious or imaginary kind; touch up
Origin: ME embelishen < extended stem of OFr embellir < em- (L in) + bel < L bellus, beautiful
See embellish in American Heritage Dictionary 4
transitive verb em·bel·lished, em·bel·lish·ing, em·bel·lish·es
- To make beautiful, as by ornamentation; decorate.
- To add ornamental or fictitious details to: a fanciful account that embellishes the true story.
Origin:
Origin: Middle English embelishen
Origin: , from Old French embellir, embelliss-
Origin: : en-, causative pref.; see en-1
Origin: + bel, beautiful (from Latin bellus; see deu-2 in Indo-European roots)
.Related Forms:
- em·belˈlish·er noun
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