gingerbread up
C1 informal separable transitive
In simple words
To add too many decorations to something so that it looks overdone or tacky.
Literal meaning: To decorate something as if covering it in gingerbread — the term comes from the fussy ornamental woodwork on Victorian buildings.
Meanings
1 C1
idiomatic
informal
To decorate a building or object with excessive, showy, or cheap ornamentation.
"The developer had gingerbread up the old warehouse with fake Victorian trim that looked ridiculous."
Grammar: separable
Usage notes
Rare and largely archaic. Derived from the elaborate decorative woodwork ('gingerbread') on Victorian buildings. Mainly encountered in historical texts or discussions of architecture. Not widely used in modern everyday speech.
Commonly used with
facade building design interior style house
Forms
Base
gingerbread up
I/you/we/they
3rd person
gingerbreads up
he/she/it
Past simple
gingerbreaded up
yesterday
Past participle
gingerbreaded up
have + pp
-ing form
gingerbreading up
continuous
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