embroider
/ɪmˈbɹɔɪdɚ/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 2.19 in modern English
14
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
verb
To add imaginary detail to a narrative to make it more interesting or acceptable.
Etymology
From Middle English embrouderen, frequentative of embrouden (“to decorate, embroider”), equivalent to embroid + -er. Middle English embrouden itself comes from Anglo-Norman embrouder, from Old French embrosder (“to embroider”), ultimately of Germanic origin, though the exact pathway is uncertain. Possibly an intensive of Old French brosder, brouder (compare Norman broudaïr), from Gothic *𐌱𐍂𐌿𐌶𐌳𐍉𐌽 (*bruzdōn), related to English bristle and brad. Alternatively, perhaps from Frankish *anbroʀdōn (“to embroider, stitch”), related to Old High German anabrortōn (“to embroider”), Old English onbryrdan (“to prick, incite”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ɪmˈbɹɔɪdɚ/
- British English: /ɪmˈbɹɔɪdə/
Inflected Forms
embroiders (present, singular)
embroidering (participle, present)
embroidered (participle, past)
embroidered (past)
embroder (alternative, obsolete)