burnish

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English

Etymology

From Middle English burnysshen, burnischen, a borrowing from Old French burnir, from its stem burniss-, variant of brunir (“to polish, make brown”), from Old French brun (“brown”). More at English brown.

Verb

burnish (third-person singular simple present burnishes, present participle burnishing, simple past and past participle burnished or (obsolete) burnisht)

  1. (transitive) To make smooth or shiny by rubbing; to polish; to shine.
    In pottery, a stone is sometimes used to burnish a pot before firing, giving it a smooth, shiny look.
    • Cunningham
      Now the village windows blaze, / Burnished by the setting sun.
  2. (intransitive) To shine forth; to brighten; to become smooth and glossy, as from swelling or filling out; hence, to grow large.
    • Dryden
      A slender poet must have time to grow, / And spread and burnish as his brothers do.
    • Herbert
      My thoughts began to burnish, sprout, and swell.
  3. (figurative) To make appear positive and highly respected.
    • 2008, Otto Rahn, Lucifer's Court: A Heretic's Journey in Search of the Light Bringers, →ISBN:
      In particular, those who experienced her three rose miracles did the most to burnish her legend.
    • 2009, Laura Browder, Her Best Shot: Women and Guns in America, →ISBN, page 133:
      Bonnie Parker helped burnish her own image.
    • 2016, Geo Takach, Scripting the Environment: Oil, Democracy and the Sands of Time and Space, →ISBN, page 165:
      Desperate to burnish her legacy, Louise pleads her case for higher status based on her achievements on Earth as a philanthropist, artist, and occasional royal rebel.

Synonyms

Translations

Noun

burnish

  1. Polish; lustre.
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