Dictionary

beautify en · VERB

Pronunciation

• /ˈbjuː.tɪ.faɪ/
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

From Middle English beutifien, from Old French beaute (“beauty”), from Latin bellus (“beautiful, fine”), + -ify, from Latin facio (“make”).

Meanings

1. (transitive) To make beautiful; to increase the beauty of.
   • ‘Boy, you take a big chance,’ Moses say. ‘Them pigeons there to beautify the park, not to eat. The people over here will kill you if you touch a fly.’ 1954, Sam Selvon, The Lonely Londoners, London: Longman, page 109:
   • “[…] I’m so thankful for friendship. It beautifies life so much.” 1909, Lucy Maud Montgomery, chapter 15, in Anne of Avonlea, Boston: L.C. Page, page 171:
   • […] she was at the other end of the room, beautifying a nosegay; 1817 (date written), [Jane Austen], chapter V, in Persuasion; published in Northanger Abbey: And Persuasion. […], volume (please specify |volume=III or IV), London: John Murray, […], 20 December 1817 (indicated as 1818), →OCLC, page 89:
   • Officials are taking these old palm trees down in several parks and public spaces as they try to beautify the city, and prevent rotting tree trunks from falling on people. 2026 April 18, Manuel Rueda, “Caracas' iconic macaws threatened by vanishing palm trees”, in National Public Radio, Washington, D.C.: National Public Radio:
   • And now, / This ornament [i.e. beard] / Makes me look dismal will I clip to form; / And what this fourteen years no razor touch’d, / To grace thy marriage-day, I’ll beautify. c. 1607–1608 (date written), William Shakespeare, [George Wilkins?], The Late, and Much Admired Play, Called Pericles, Prince of Tyre. […], London: […] [William White and Thomas Creede] for Henry Gosson, […], published 1609, →OCLC, [Act V, scene iii]:
   • 1592, Robert Greene, Greene's Groats-Worth of Wit, London: William Wright, “Robertoes Tale” […] there is an vpstart Crow, beautified with our feathers, that with his Tygers hart wrapt in a Players hyde, supposes he is as well able to bombast out a blanke verse as the best of you:
2. (intransitive, rare) To become beautiful.
   • […] it must be a Prospect pleasing to God himself, to see his Creation for ever beautifying in his Eyes, and drawing nearer to him, by greater Degrees of Resemblance. 1719, Joseph Addison, “Upon the Immortality of the Soul”, in Maxims, Observations, and Reflections, London: E. Curll, page 88:
3. (intransitive, rare) To make oneself beautiful.
   • She’d felt silly when she first put cucumbers on her eyes (to diminish puffiness), or oatmeal on her face (to cleanse the pores and absorb excess oils), or egg yolks in her hair (to make it shine). Her use of groceries had even made my mother laugh, then wonder if she should start to beautify. 2002, Alice Sebold, chapter 13, in The Lovely Bones, London: Picador, page 156:
4. Synonym of pretty-print.

Forms

Antonyms

uglify · minify · uglify · deface · mar · disfigure · blight

Deriveds

rebeautify · unbeautify

Relateds

beautifier · beautifiable · beautification · beautifying

Synonyms

prettify · ornament · prettify · pretty-print · adorn · decorate

Translations (59)

kk әшекейлеу (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · he ייפה (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · cmn 美化 (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · fa زیبیدن (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · fi kaunistaa (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · sh улѐпшати (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · ja 美化する (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · az gözəlləşdirmək (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · ar جَمَّلَ (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · vo jönükön (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · yrl mpuranga (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · mi whakapaipai (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · bg разхубавявам (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · es embellecer (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · sh uljèpšati (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · el καλλωπίζω (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · ru украша́ть (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · es enchular (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · mt sebbah (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · yi באַשײַנען (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · es hermosear (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · ga barr maise a chur ar (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · la orno (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · la extollo (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · ro înfrumuseța (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · hy զարդարել (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · sh уљѐпшати (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · fa برازیدن (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · bg разкрасявам (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · tr güzelleştirmek (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · mt jsebbħu (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · hu szépít (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · no forskjønne (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · mi whakaātaahua (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · mi whakarāwai (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · mi whakapīwari (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · ga áilligh (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · eo beligi (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · pl upiększać (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · io beligar (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · is fegra (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · cs krášlit (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · sh ulèpšati (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · yrl mupuranga (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · fa زیبادن (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · de verschönern (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · ga maisigh (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · la decoro (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · pt embelezar (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · el ομορφαίνω (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · pl upiększyć (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · la venusto (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · it abbellire (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · ga breáthaigh (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · ja 美しくする (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · vo jönön (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · de ausschmücken (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · fr embellir (to make beautiful or more beautiful) · he קישט (to make beautiful or more beautiful)