MEANING
1. To add a decorative or enhancing element, especially to food when serving it.
2. To use a legal procedure to direct money or property owed to someone toward payment of a debt.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- garnish a dish
- garnish with herbs
On the page
She garnished the soup with herbs while the guests argued in the next room.
The host had garnished each plate more carefully than the conversation warranted.
Nearby words
Related words
Word forms
- Base
- garnish
- Past tense
- garnished
- Past participle
- garnished
- Present participle
- garnishing
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- garnish
- Present continuous
- am/is/are garnishing
- Present perfect
- have/has garnished
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been garnishing
- Past
- garnished
- Past continuous
- was/were garnishing
- Past perfect
- had garnished
- Past perfect continuous
- had been garnishing
- Future
- will garnish
- Future continuous
- will be garnishing
- Future perfect
- will have garnished
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been garnishing
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
Usage notes
Primary category: literary. Forms: garnish; garnishes; garnished; garnished; garnishing Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Third-person singular: garnishes.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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