spruced up
1
4.6
- phrasal verb
- /sprust ʌp/
- Informal
- When I appeared (neat and clean, spruced up in stolen clothes, heart buoyed with hope) in front of the guy at the office, the one in charge of human resources, he practically laughed in my face.
- spruced up nicely
- spruced-up home
Examples
-
She spruced herself up.
Fiction book (1995) -
The van drove by the spruced-up "watering hole" Robert L. Cole Community Lake.
Blog text (1) -
In the newly painted, spruced-up cider house, Homer and Candy are dancing to another slow, sexy song on the radio.
Fiction book (1999) -
Before the wedding, she made sure to get all spruced up, wearing a beautiful dress and polished shoes.
-
The city's park was spruced up with new benches and vibrant flowers, making it a lovely spot for families.
-
After their vacation, the house was spruced up, with fresh paint and a tidy garden welcoming guests.
Synonyms
50
2.4
Wearing neat, clean clothes that look smart, like a suit or nice shirt
49
3.7
Having a neat, stylish appearance from careful grooming
46
2.7
Wearing special formal clothes for a party or event
23
3.0
Neat and clean in appearance because someone cares for it
17
7.8
Neat and stylish in appearance
13
6.9
Dressed in fancy clothes and makeup for a special event
11
3.5
Neat and tidy in appearance with clean clothes and neat hair
4
7.6
Wearing very elegant formal clothes for a special occasion
4
4.1
Dressed neatly and looking smart for a special event
1
7.4
Dressed in nice clothes or made to look neat and attractive
1
6.3
Dressed in smart, formal clothes for a special event
1
6.3
Looks tidy and neat after an extra effort to look good
1
6.8
Wearing very attractive, stylish clothes to get people's attention
1
8.2
To wear nice clothes for a special event
1
7.8
Wearing stylish, elegant clothes
1
9.1
Wearing smart clothes for a special event
Antonyms
How Neat
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'made tidy and attractive' follows directly from combining 'spruce' (to tidy or smarten) with the particle 'up' (indicating completion or improvement). This verb+particle composition is a common, compositional English pattern, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents should be able to infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Spruced up may come from the picture of a neat spruce tree and the word up meaning 'made more', so it suggests making someone or something tidy and smart like the tree. That's why 'spruced up' means 'made neat or more attractive'.