refine

English

Etymology

From re- + fine.

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ɹɪˈfaɪn/
• Rhymes: -aɪn

Verb

refine (third-person singular simple present refines, present participle refining, simple past and past participle refined)

1. To reduce to a fine, unmixed, or pure state; to free from impurities; to free from dross or alloy; to separate from extraneous matter; to purify; as, to refine gold or silver; to refine iron; to refine wine or sugar.
2. To purify from what is gross, coarse, vulgar, inelegant, low, and the like; to make elegant or excellent; to polish; as, to refine the manners, the language, the style, the taste, the intellect, or the moral feelings.
3. To become pure; to be cleared of feculent matter.
4. To improve in accuracy, delicacy, or excellence.
5. To affect nicety or subtlety in thought or language.

Related terms

• refinement
• refiner
• refinery

Translations

to reduce to a fine, unmixed, or pure state; to free from impurities; to free from dross or alloy

Catalan: refinar (ca) Czech: čistit (cs), vyčistit (cs), pročistit (cs), rafinovat (cs) Danish: raffinere (da), rense (da) Finnish: jalostaa (fi), puhdistaa (fi) Italian: raffinare (it), decontaminare (it), decantare (it)

Portuguese: refinar (pt) Russian: очищать (ru) Spanish: refinar (es) Swedish: raffinera (sv)

to purify from what is gross, coarse, vulgar, inelegant, low, and the like; to make elegant or excellent; to polish

Catalan: refinar (ca) Czech: kultivovat (cs) Danish: forbedre (da), forfine (da) Finnish: kehittää (fi), jalostaa (fi) Italian: purificare (it), raffinare (it), ripulire (it), sgrossare (it), lucidare (it)

Portuguese: refinar (pt) Russian: облагораживать (ru) Spanish: perfeccionar (es) Swedish: raffinera (sv), förfina (sv)

to become pure; to be cleared of feculent matter

Catalan: refinar (ca) Finnish: jalostua (fi)

Italian: decantare (it), purificare (it) Portuguese: purificar (pt)

to improve in accuracy, delicacy, or excellence

Catalan: refinar (ca) Czech: vylepšovat (cs) Finnish: kehittää (fi), jalostaa (fi)

Hebrew: (formally) השתבח (he) (Hishtabe'ach) Italian: migliorare (it) Russian: совершенствоваться (ru)

to affect nicety or subtlety in thought or language

Catalan: refinar (ca) Finnish: jalostaa (fi), hioa (fi)

Italian: raffinare (it), migliorare (it), impreziosire (it), purificare (it) Swedish: raffinera (sv), förfina (sv)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

Dutch: verfijnen (nl)

French: raffiner, affiner, perfectionner Portuguese: refinar (pt)

External links

• refine in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• refine in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

Anagrams

• ferine

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Spanish

Verb

refine (infinitive refinar)

1. Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of refinar.
2. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of refinar.
3. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of refinar.
4. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present subjunctive form of refinar.