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Glite Dictionary
to tart up

to tart up

1 8.9
To make something or someone look bright and showy to attract attention
  • phrasal verb
  • UK
translation icon : adornar
  • It should be tarted up!

Examples

  • Before the event, he always tarted up to make a good impression.

  • - So let's get tarted up and...

    Pitch Perfect 3 (2017)

  • Uh... fix your shirt and tart up your hair.

    101 Dalmatians (1996)

  • Tarted up, true.

    Quills (2000)

  • Mindful of the fact that my story was nothing more than a tarted up western, I thought this would give it a certain cache., and I left no lily unpainted.

    The Conqueror: Hollywood Fallout (2024)

  • She tarted up her outfit with bright jewelry for the party.

  • The café was tarted up with colorful decorations to attract more customers.

Synonyms

to dress something up
vsto tart up
56 3.4

Make something look nicer or more attractive for a special event

can be more about flashy, attention grabbing decoration rather than subtle improvement
to dress up
vsto tart up
12 2.9

Make something look better than it really is

adds that the act often aims for flashy, tasteless attraction rather than truth
to primp
vsto tart up
  • Informal
8 7.2

To get ready by fixing your clothes, hair, or makeup carefully

is more strongly about showy dressing that aims to attract attention
to pretty up
vsto tart up
  • Informal
6 4.3

Make people and places look nicer by dressing up, adding decorations, or using makeup

often implies a showier, attention seeking result rather than subtle change
to gussy up
vsto tart up
  • Informal
5 8.6

To dress or decorate in a fancy way to look nicer

often feels more flashy and attention seeking rather than simply neat
to tart
vsto tart up
  • UK
4 6.9

To make something look showy to attract attention

is the informal action of decorating or dressing to attract attention
to trick out
vsto tart up
  • Informal
1 7.4

To make something like a car or outfit look very fancy by adding bright decorations

is more about showy, flashy decoration aimed at attracting attention
to doll up
vsto tart up
  • Informal
1 7.2

To dress up and make yourself look attractive for a special event

leans more toward flashy, attention seeking dressing rather than neat grooming
to glam up
vsto tart up
  • Informal
1 6.8

Make yourself or someone more stylish using clothes and makeup

is more about making things flashily eye catching rather than refined glamour
to put on the dog
vsto tart up
  • Informal
1 9.9

Act in a showy way to impress people

focuses more narrowly on flashy dressing or decorating to attract attention
to prank
vsto tart up
  • Archaic
1 8.1

To dress something in showy clothes or decorations

often has a stronger sense of tasteless flashiness to attract notice
to bedizen
vsto tart up
9.9

To make clothes or things look too bright and ugly

is a casual term for dressing or decorating to attract attention
to dizen
vsto tart up
  • Archaic
9.9

To dress or decorate in a very bright way to get attention

leans more toward informal, flashy dressing to attract attention
to gussie
vsto tart up
  • Informal
9.9

To make a person or thing look fancy, often in a showy way

tends more toward garish or attention grabbing presentation
to trick up
vsto tart up
  • Informal
7.2

To make someone or something look fancier to impress people

usually implies a flashier, attention grabbing result
to pimpin'
vsto tart up
  • Slang
9.9

Making a car or other object look bright and showy with extra parts

is similar but used more for dressing or decorating people or objects
to prink
vsto tart up
  • Archaic
9.9

To dress carefully to look fancy

is more plainly about flashy dressing or decorating to attract notice
to fancy up
vsto tart up
  • Informal
6.5

Make something look more stylish and attractive

can be more extreme and flashy, aiming to attract attention
to dandify
vsto tart up
  • Archaic
9.6

To dress someone or make them act in a showy, fashionable way

is more likely to suggest tasteless flashiness to attract viewers
to deck up
vsto tart up
  • Informal
8.2

To put on special clothes to look nice for an event

is more about flashy or gaudy dressing intended to attract eyes
to tog out
vsto tart up
  • UK
8.6

To dress in nice clothes for a special event

is often more extreme and showy with the purpose of attracting attention
to tog up
vsto tart up
  • UK
9.4

To put on special clothes to look attractive for an event

tends more toward flashy decoration meant to draw attention rather than neat dress
to fig up
vsto tart up
  • UK
9.9

To put on fancy clothes to look good

leans more toward flashy, attention seeking decoration or dress
to bedizen oneself
vsto tart up
9.9

Dress yourself in bright, showy clothes or jewelry to attract attention

is the casual term for dressing or decorating to attract attention

Antonyms

to simplify
99 2.5

Make something easier to understand or use

to downplay
59 5.3

Show something as less important or serious than it is

How Flashy

to overdo
58 3.6
to tart up
  • UK
1 8.9
to gussy up
  • Informal
5 8.6
to dress up
178 2.7
to spruce up
  • Informal
13 3.8
to freshen up
  • Informal
4 3.0

Surface Forms

tart up infinitive
tarted up past
tarted up past participle
tarting up present participle
tarts up third person singular

Morphology

tart + up

The meaning is directly compositional: 'tart' (to embellish or gussy up) combined with the particle 'up' (completion/intensification) yields ‘make showy or flashy’. Although there is a negative/tawdry nuance, that connotation does not prevent a learner who knows the constituents from predicting the overall meaning, following common verb + up patterns.

Etymology

Tart up probably comes from the old use of tart for a woman who dressed in a very showy way. So, to tart up something means to make it look bright or flashy, often in a cheap way, to 'attract attention'.