to make something overly bright, showy, or decorated with gaudy ornaments in an excessive way.
From the prefix 'be-' (meaning to cause or cover) combined with 'gaudy' (from uncertain origin, possibly from Latin 'gaudium' meaning joy). The verb form emerged in Middle English to describe the action of making something gauidly ornamental.
This word captures a very specific aesthetic sin—it's not just 'showy,' it's the active process of making something too showy. Victorian fashion designers probably used this word a lot when describing what their rivals were doing with their dress designs.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.