A*dorn" (&?;), v. t. [imp. & p.
p. Adorned (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n.
Adorning.] [OE. aournen, anournen, adornen, OF.
aorner, fr. L. aaornare; ad + ornare to
furnish, embellish. See Adore, Ornate.] To deck or dress
with ornaments; to embellish; to set off to advantage; to render pleasing
or attractive.
As a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.
Isa. lxi. 10.
At church, with meek and unaffected grace,
His looks adorned the venerable place.
Goldsmith.
Syn. -- To deck; decorate; embellish; ornament; beautify; grace;
dignify; exalt; honor. -- To Adorn, Ornament,
Decorate, Embellish. We decorate and ornament
by putting on some adjunct which is attractive or beautiful, and
which serves to heighten the general effect. Thus, a lady's head-dress may
be ornament or decorated with flowers or jewelry; a hall may
be decorated or ornament with carving or gilding, with
wreaths of flowers, or with hangings. Ornament is used in a wider
sense than decorate. To embellish is to beautify or ornament
richly, not so much by mere additions or details as by modifying the thing
itself as a whole. It sometimes means gaudy and artificial decoration. We
embellish a book with rich engravings; a style is embellished
with rich and beautiful imagery; a shopkeeper embellishes his front
window to attract attention. Adorn is sometimes identical with
decorate, as when we say, a lady was adorned with jewels. In
other cases, it seems to imply something more. Thus, we speak of a gallery
of paintings as adorned with the works of some of the great masters,
or adorned with noble statuary and columns. Here decorated
and ornamented would hardly be appropriate. There is a value in
these works of genius beyond mere show and ornament. Adorn may be
used of what is purely moral; as, a character adorned with every
Christian grace. Here neither decorate, nor ornament, nor
embellish is proper.
A*dorn", n. Adornment. [Obs.]
Spenser.
A*dorn", a. Adorned; decorated.
[Obs.] Milton.
