Dictionary: DEC'O-RA-TED – DE-CREAS'ING

a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h | i | j | k | l | m | n | o | p | q | r | s | t | u | v | w | x | y | z |

1234567891011121314151617181920
2122232425262728293031323334353637383940
4142434445464748495051525354555657585960
6162636465666768697071727374757677787980
81828384858687888990919293949596979899100
101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120
121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140
141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160
161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180
181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200
201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215

DEC'O-RA-TED, pp.

Adorned; beautified; embellished.

DEC'O-RA-TING, ppr.

Adorning; embellishing; rendering beautiful to the eye, or lovely to the mind.

DEC-O-RA'TION, n.

  1. Ornament; embellishment; any thing added which renders more agreeable to the eye or to the intellectual view.
  2. In architecture, any thing which adorns and enriches an edifice, as vases, paintings, figures, festoons, &c.
  3. In theaters, the scenes, which are changed as occasion requires.

DEC'O-RA-TIVE, a.

Adorning; suited to embellish.

DEC'O-RA-TIVE-NESS, n.

Quality of being decorative.

DEC'O-RA-TOR, n.

One who adorns or embellishes.

DEC'O-ROUS, a. [L. decorus; See Decency.]

Decent; suitable to a character, or to the time, place and occasion; becoming; proper; befitting; as, a decorous speech; decorous behavior; a decorous dress for a judge.

DEC'O-ROUS-LY, adv.

In a becoming manner.

DEC'O-ROUS-NESS, n.

Decency or propriety of behavior.

DE-COR'TI-CATE, v.t. [L. decortico; de and cortex, bark.]

To strip off bark; to peel; to husk; to take off the exterior coat; as, to decorticate barley. – Arbuthnot.

DE-COR'TI-CA-TED, pp.

Stripped of bark; peeled; husked.

DE-COR'TI-CA-TING, ppr.

Stripping off bark or the external coat; peeling.

DE-COR-TI-CA'TION, n.

The act of stripping off bark or husk.

DE-CO'RUM, n. [L. from deceo, to become. See Decency.]

  1. Propriety of speech or behavior; suitableness of speech and behavior, to one's own character, and to the characters present, or to the place and occasion; seemliness; decency; opposed to rudeness, licentiousness, or levity. To speak and behave with decorum is essential to good breeding.
  2. In architecture, the suitableness of a building, and of its parts and ornaments, to its place and uses.

DE-COY', n.

  1. Any thing intended to lead into a snare; any lure or allurement that deceives and misleads into evil, danger, or the power of an enemy.
  2. A place for catching wild fowls.

DE-COY', v.t. [D. kooi, a cabin, berth, bed, fold, cage, decoy; kooijen, to lie, to bed.]

To lead or lure by artifice into a snare, with a view to catch; to draw into any situation to be taken by a foe; to entrap by any means which deceive. The fowler decoys ducks into a net. Troops may be decoyed into an ambush. One ship decoys another within reach of her shot.

DE-COY'-DUCK, n.

A duck employed to draw others into a net or situation to be taken.

DE-COY'ED, pp.

Lured or drawn into a snare or net; allured into danger by deception.

DE-COY'ING, ppr.

Luring into a snare or net by deception; leading into evil or danger.

DE-COY'-MAN, n.

A man employed in decoying and catching fowls.

DE-CREASE', n.

  1. A becoming less; gradual diminution; decay; as, a decrease of revenue; a decrease of strength.
  2. The wane of the moon; the gradual diminution of the visible face of the moon from the full to the change.

DE-CREASE', v.i. [L. decresco; de and cresco, to grow; Fr. decroître; It. decrescere; Sp. decrecer; Arm. digrisgi. See Grow.]

To become less; to be diminished gradually, in extent, bulk, quantity, or amount, or in strength, quality, or excellence; as, the days decrease in length from June to December. He must increase, but I must decrease. – John iii.

DE-CREASE', v.t.

To lessen; to make smaller in dimensions, amount, quality or excellence, &c.; to diminish gradually or by small deductions; as, extravagance decreases the means of charity; every payment decreases a debt; intemperance decreases the strength and powers of life.

DE-CREAS'ED, pp.

Lessened; diminished.

DE-CREAS'ING, ppr.

Becoming less; diminishing; waning.