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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 spiff in a Sentence
Mike Dojc, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024
Until Kelly is fired off the car business and commissioned by the Nixon administration (via a shadowy CIA-type figure played by Woody Harrelson) to bring her advertising smarts to NASA to spiff up its public image before a divided America.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 9 July 2024
The retailer has thousands of cargo pants, midi dresses, and blazers to spiff up your closet with finds inspired by the Princess of Wales.
—Alyssa Grabinski, Peoplemag, 27 Sep. 2023
In late 1986, a book publisher — Harcourt Brace Jovanovich — bought Marineland, pledging to keep it going and even spiff it up.
—Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 17 Aug. 2023
See all Example Sentences for spiff 
Dictionary Entries Near spiff
Cite this Entry
“Spiff.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spiff. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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