See Also: refine(medicine)
refine(dictionary)
refine(dictionary)

refine (iou)



refine verb. L16.
[from RE- + FINE verb3, partly after French raffiner.]
I. verb trans.
Purify (a metal) by removing oxides, gas, etc. L16.
a. Clear (the spirits, mind, etc.) from dullness; make clearer or more subtle. L16-E18.
b. Purify morally, raise to a higher spiritual state. M17-E18.
Free from impurities; purify, cleanse; spec. purify (oil, sugar, etc.) by a series of special processes. E17.
Free from imperfections or defects; spec. make (a language, composition, etc.) more elegant or cultured. E17.
G. Daly Her poetry..gained simplicity and directness as she refined it.
Free from rudeness or vulgarity; make more polished, elegant, or cultured. M17.
Lytton He had sought less to curb, than to refine and elevate her imagination.
a. Bring into or raise to a certain state by refining. M17.
b. Purify or cleanse from something. M17.
c. Clear away or out of by refining. M19.
II. verb intrans.
Become pure; grow clear or free from impurities. E17.
Become more polished, elegant, or cultured. E17.
Use or affect a subtlety of thought or language. (Foll. by on, upon.) M17.
W. Golding Not to refine upon it, my mind is all at sea.
Improve on or upon something by introducing refinements. M17.
refinable adjective E17.
refining verbal noun the action of the verb; an instance of this: E17.
refiningly adverb (rare) in a refining manner E19.