spruce up

phrasal verb

spruced up; sprucing up; spruces up

: to make (someone or something) look cleaner, neater, or more attractive

We spruced up the room with a fresh coat of paint.

I need to spruce myself up a bit before we go out to dinner.

Did you know?

titivate, spruce up, smarten up, or spiff up?

Titivate, spruce, smarten, and spiff all mean "to make a person or thing neater or more attractive." Titivate often refers to making small additions or alterations in attire ("titivate the costume with sequins and other accessories"), but it can also be used figuratively (as in "titivating the script for Broadway"). Spruce up is sometimes used for cosmetic changes or renovations that give the appearance of newness ("spruce up the house with new shutters and fresh paint before trying to sell it"). Smarten up and spiff up both mean to improve in appearance often by making more neat or stylish ("the tailor smartened up the suit with minor alterations"; "he needed some time to spiff himself up for the party"). The origins of titivate are uncertain, but it may have been formed from the English words tidy and renovate.

Examples of spruce up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Your boards are great and thoughtful, but the sorting mechanism could use some sprucing up. B Brennan T. · 3h 14m ago How much of the Red Wings recent success can be attributed to the usual new coach bump, and how much of it is the real deal, i.e. sustainable? —Chris Johnston, The Athletic, 4 Feb. 2025

The exterior has been spruced up just a tad, with a more aggressive lower front fascia, new rocker panels, and body-color lower trim. —Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 23 Jan. 2025

These are easy ways to spruce up otherwise bland statements. —Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 13 Jan. 2025

Hayek spruced up her smokey eye with green glitter while Cyrus added silver sparkle to hers. —Katie McBroom, WWD, 6 Jan. 2025