ornate
/ɔɹˈneɪt/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.19 in modern English
6
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
adj
Finely finished, as a style of composition.
Example Sentences
- "The house of Ruthven was a small but ultra-modern limestone affair, between Madison and Fifth ;[…]. As a matter of fact its narrow ornate façade presented not a single quiet space that the eyes might rest on after a tiring attempt to follow and codify the arabesques, foliations, and intricate vermiculations of what some disrespectfully dubbed as “near-aissance.”"
- "a graceful and ornate rhetoric"
- "And truely thoſe that lyue in the feare of god, (conſydering that they ſerue not only their carnal maiſters, but God hymſelfe,) they be in a good caſe: but they may not bee eye ſeruauntes. […] Saincte Paule woulde haue them to lyue ſo, that they maye ornate and ſanctifye the name of God."
Etymology
Learned borrowing from Latin ōrnātus, perfect passive participle of ōrnō (“to equip, adorn”), see -ate (adjective-forming suffix). Doublet of orné.
Origin
- Source language: Latin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *h₂er-, ōrnātus
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ɔɹˈneɪt/
Usage
Inflected Forms
more ornate (comparative)
most ornate (superlative)
ornates (present, singular)
ornating (participle, present)
ornated (participle, past)
ornated (past)