Etymologically
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ornamental

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 31 October 2026 at 22:33. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • UK: /ˌɔː.nəˈmɛn.təl/[1]
  • US: /ˌɔɹ.nəˈmɛn.təl/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English ornament + -al,[2][3][4][5] and Etymonline adds that it was partly modelled on Latin ornamentalis.[5] Ornament goes back through Old French ornement to Latin ōrnāmentum (“equipment, decoration”), from ōrnō (“to equip, adorn”).[6][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Serving as an ornament; decorative: 1595, in R. S.'s translation of the Amorous Contention of Phillis and Flora.[2][7] Etymonline dates the adjective only to the 1640s,[5] and the Shorter Oxford and Dictionary.com to the mid 17th century.[3][4]

Semantic evolution

The first sense contrasts what adds beauty with what is merely useful.[2] Johnson (1755) defined it as "serving to decoration; giving embellishment".[8] From 1772, in a letter of Josiah Wedgwood, it could also describe a person or works producing decorative pieces.[2] It was used from 1796 of plants grown for their appearance.[2] The noun began in 1650 in the plural, for things that are decorative rather than essential (a use that ended in the 19th century);[2] the ornamental, the decorative or non-essential, followed in 1774,[2] and an ornamental for a tree, shrub or plant grown for its looks in 1903.[2] Merriam-Webster dates the noun to 1650.[7]

Timeline

  • 1595 – serving as an ornament, decorative.[2][7]
  • 1650 – noun, in the plural: decorative but non-essential things (obsolete by 1863).[2][7]
  • 1772 – producing ornaments or decorative work.[2]
  • 1774 – the ornamental, that which is decorative.[2]
  • 1796 – of a plant, grown for its decorative appearance.[2]
  • 1903 – noun, a plant grown for its attractive appearance.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Serving to decorate or adorn; valued for its looks rather than its use: an ornamental fountain in the courtyard.[9][7][2]
  2. Of a plant: grown for display in houses, parks or gardens.[9][2]

Noun

  1. A plant grown for its beauty rather than for food or another use.[9][7][2]
  2. A decorative object.[7][2]

Word family

  • ornamentally
  • ornamentality
  • nonornamental
  • ornamentalism
  • unornamental

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  5. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  8. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  9. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins