gussy
/ˈɡʌsi
/verb (gussies, gussying, gussied) [with object] (gussy someone/thing up) North American informal
Make someone or something more attractive, especially in a showy or gimmicky way: shopkeepers gussied up their window displays...
- Teams of specialists on the ground gussy them up for public consumption.
- They can try to gussy it up all they want, but baseball remains essentially an idler's game.
- Well, I'll gussy it up, stick it in a frame or some such to hang in my office (read: bathroom) until such time comes for me to display it publicly.
Origin
1940s: perhaps from Gussie, pet form of the given name Augustus.
- overvulcanize
- over-warm
- have (or add) another string to one's bow
- have (or be on) a short fuse
- have (or eat) someone for breakfast
- have (or gain) the upper hand
- have (or get) a foot in the door
- have (or get) a leg-up on
- have (or get) itchy feet
- have (or get)one's snout (or nose) in the trough
- have (or get) one's snout (or nose) in the trough
- have (or get) someone/thing taped
- have (or get) something down to a fine art
- have (or give) it large
- have (or have grown) whiskers
- have (or hold) no terrors for someone
- have (or hold) someone in the palm of one's hand
- have (or keep) an ear to the ground
- have (or keep) one's eye on
- have (or keep) one's finger on the pulse
- have (or keep) one's (or both) feet on the ground
- have (or keep) one's wits about one
- have (or know) all the answers
- have (or put) one's heart in
- have (or put) someone/thing down as