'embroider' originates from Middle English 'embrouderen' (or 'embroideren'), from Old French 'embroder' (with the prefix 'en-' + 'broder'), where 'broder' meant 'to embroider; to decorate with needlework'.

'embroider' changed from Middle English 'embrouderen' (or 'embroideren') and Old French 'embroder' and eventually became the modern English word 'embroider' and its derived forms like 'embroidered'.

Initially, it meant 'to decorate cloth with needlework'; over time it kept that primary sense but also developed a figurative meaning 'to embellish (a story or account)'.