was wotd|2006|October|16
English
Etymology
A common misquotation of a line from w:William Shakespeare|William Shakespeare's 1595 play s:The Life and Death of King John|King John, iv 2:
:"To gild refined gold, to paint the lily, to throw a perfume on the violet, to smooth the ice, or add another hue unto the rainbow, or with taper-light to seek the beauteous eye of heaven to garnish, is wasteful and ridiculous excess."
Pronunciation
IPA|/�gɪld ð� �lɪli/
audio|en-us-gild the lily.ogg|Audio (US)
Verb
en-verb|inf=to gild the lily|gilds the lily|gilding the lily|gilded the lily
- intransitive To embellish something that does not need it.
- intransitive To add unnecessary bells and whistles.
Quotations
1920 � w:G. K. Chesterton|G. K. Chesterton, s:The New Jerusalem|The New Jerusalem, ch IV
:If we are critical of the petty things they do to glorify great things, they would find quite as much to criticise (as in Kensington Gardens) in the great things we do to glorify petty things. And if we wonder at the way in which they seem to gild the lily, they would wonder quite as much at the way we gild the weed.
Category:Words from Shakespeare
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