Vamped

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Created or provided something quickly to fill a need or repair a situation ; acted in a theatrical or seductive way to attract attention or entertain
2. Put together or renewed something on short notice or with limited resources ; behaved with excessive charm or dramatics to impress others
3. Assembled or restored something in an improvised way ; engaged in a performance style that is flashy, suggestive, or exaggerated for effect

Etymology: The verb "vamped" is simply the past tense of "vamp," and its surprising path begins with a shoe. Middle English "vaumpe" or "vampe" named the covering for the top of the foot, the upper of a boot or shoe, and it probably came from Old French "avantpied," literally "before the foot," built from "avant" ("in front") and "pié" ("foot"). From the shoe part, the word broadened to mean a patch, and then something patched up or improvised. The verb grew out of that noun, so to vamp something was to repair footwear with a new upper, and from there to put together something makeshift in a hurry. That is the sense that remains in "vamped," meaning patched up hastily. Music took the word in another direction: a repeated, often improvised accompaniment came to be called a vamp, and from that came the sense of filling time to stall for it.

Synonyms: improvised