You searched for: “preening”
preen (verb), preens; preened; preening
1. To clean, to arrange, to groom as birds do with their feathers by using their beaks: Ray saw the pigeons preening themselves in the tree in his backyard.
2. To make oneself neat and tidy: Shirley stood in front of the mirror preening herself before going on a date with Warren.
3. Etymology: from Latin pro-, "before" + oindre, "to trim, to cut back."
To adorn or to make oneself look better.
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This entry is located in the following unit: English Words in Action, Group P (page 4)