festoon
/fɛsˈtuːn/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 1.99 in modern English
10
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A bas-relief, painting, or structural motif resembling such an ornament.
noun
A raised cable with light globes attached.
noun
A cloud on Jupiter that hangs out of its home belt or zone into an adjacent area forming a curved finger-like image or a complete loop back to its home belt or zone.
noun
A specific style of electric light bulb consisting of a cylindrical enclosure with two points of contact on either end providing power to the filament or diode.
noun
Any of various papilionid butterflies of the genus Zerynthia.
Example Sentences
- "The half-dozen pieces […] were painted white and carved with festoons of flowers, birds and cupids. To display them the walls had been tinted a vivid blue which had now faded, but the carpet, which had evidently been stored and recently relaid, retained its original turquoise."
- "The tree trunks and the creepers that festooned them lost themselves in a green dusk thirty feet above him, and all about was the undergrowth."
- "He was bewildered by how the car was festooned with polka dots."
- "A mysterious woman who shows up at a funeral more droopily festooned in black than the widow is making what is known as a fashion statement."
- "Some teachers festoon every spare inch of wall with vocabulary choices or maths techniques to use, which look great at first, but to some children might appear quite daunting. You'll probably see unfamiliar acronyms such as Walt (We Are Learning To). Be sure to ask what they stand for and how they are used in practice."
- "Most mistletoes are "hemiparasites." This means they don't rely on their hosts for all their needs: Instead, they harvest the sun's energy to make some sugars for themselves. Nonetheless, if you're a tree, you don't want to be festooned with them. Two or three shouldn't be a problem, but dozens of mistletoes can lead to water stress, insect infestation or even death."
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *dʰéh₁s Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁stosder. Proto-Italic *θēstos Proto-Italic *fēstosder. Latin fēstus Latin fēsta Late Latin fēsta Italian festa Proto-Indo-European *-ōder. Proto-Indo-European *-Hōder.? Latin -ōnem Italian -one Italian festonebor. French festonbor. English festoon Borrowed from French feston.
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /fɛsˈtuːn/
- British English: /fɛsˈtuːn/