Ornament

Definitions

1. An element of decoration; that which embellishes or adorns.
   countable, uncountable
2. Ellipsis of Christmas ornament; a Christmas tree decoration.
   abbreviation, alt-of, broadly, countable, ellipsis, uncountable
3. A musical flourish that is unnecessary to the overall melodic or harmonic line, but serves to decorate that line.
   countable, uncountable
4. The articles used in church services.
   countable, in-plural, uncountable
5. A characteristic that has a decorative function (typically in order to attract a mate)
   countable, uncountable

Equivalents

Examples

“Dust are our frames; and, gilded dust, our pride / Looks only for a moment whole and sound⟳; / Like⟳ that long-buried body of the king / Found lying with his urns and ornaments, / Which at a touch⟳ of light⟳, an air of heaven, / Slipt into ashes and was found no more.”

“I'm a bit short on brain myself; the old bean would appear⟳ to have⟳ been constructed more for ornament than for use⟳.”

“Drawings and pictures are more than mere ornaments in scientific discourse. Blackboard sketches, geological maps, diagrams of molecular structure⟳, astronomical photographs, MRI images, the many varieties of statistical charts and graphs: These pictorial devices are indispensable tools for presenting evidence, for explaining a theory, for telling a story.”

CEFR level