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Another word for polish

a-z
Verb

  1. To give a gleaming luster to, usually through friction

      1. To soften the surface of (leather) by raising a nap.
      2. To clean or shine with a buff or treated cloth
      3. To polish or shine with a piece of soft material.
      1. To make or become shiny by rubbing; polish
      2. To rub with a tool that serves especially to smooth or polish.
      1. (Now Rare) To brighten by rubbing or scouring; polish; burnish
      2. To brighten by cleaning or rubbing; polish.
      3. To restore to attractive or serviceable condition; renovate.
      1. To apply a glaze to:
      2. To give (the eyes) a glassy look
      3. To coat (a painted surface) with a semitransparent color
      1. To provide (an expression or a text) with a gloss or glosses.
      2. To give a bright sheen or luster to.
      3. To apply a gloss to:
      1. To create light with (a flashlight, lamp, torch, or similar).
      2. To emit or reflect light; be radiant or bright with light; gleam; glow
      3. (US) To make bright; to cause to shine by reflected light.
      1. (Dated) With ease and dexterity.
      2. To make sleek; slick:
    See also:

    light

  2. To bring to perfection or completion

      1. To bring to perfection or completion:
      2. To make perfect or more nearly perfect according to a given standard, as by training
      1. To become fine or pure; become free from impurities, etc.
      2. To use precise distinctions and subtlety in thought or speech.
      3. To free from coarse, unsuitable, or immoral characteristics:
      1. To become smooth.
      2. To cause to appear less harsh or severe than is the case:
      3. To make (something) even, level, or unwrinkled:
    Idioms:
    See also:

    better

  3. To improve by making minor changes or additions

      1. (Archaeology) To modify (a flaked stone tool) by secondary flaking along the cutting edge.
      2. To improve or change (a photographic negative or print), as by adding details or removing flaws.
      3. To color (recent growth of hair) to match hair that was tinted, dyed, or bleached at an earlier date.
    See also:

    better

Noun

  1. A radiant brightness or glow, usually due to light reflected from a smooth surface

    See also:

    light

  2. Refined, effortless beauty of manner, form, and style

    See also:

    beautiful

    style

Idioms:

    polish off

  1. To use all of

    2. polish off

  2. To eat completely or entirely

© Roget’s II: The New Thesaurus Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Another word for polish

Noun
  1. See also:

    finish

Verb
      1. To make or become shiny by rubbing; polish
      2. To rub with a tool that serves especially to smooth or polish.
      1. To make smooth or soft like buff
      2. To polish or shine with a piece of soft material.
      3. To clean or shine with a buff or treated cloth
      1. (Cricket) To polish a cricket ball using saliva and one's clothing.
      2. (US) To make bright; to cause to shine by reflected light.
      3. To create light with (a flashlight, lamp, torch, or similar).
      1. To make or become bright or brighter.
      1. To move (one's hand, a cloth, etc.) over, or spread or apply (polish, etc.) on or over, a surface or object in this way
      2. To put into a specified condition by applying pressure and friction
      3. To apply to a surface firmly and with friction:
      1. To grow gradually larger, more numerous, etc.; increase in strength, intensity, volume, etc.
      2. To rub, polish, cover, smear, or treat with wax
      3. To remove (facial or body hair) by covering the skin with a layer of wax that is peeled off after hardening, uprooting the encased hairs.
      1. To rid of dirt, rubbish, or impurities:
      2. To remove (dirt, impurities, etc.) in making clean
      3. In a clean or nonpolluting manner:
      1. To make (something) even, level, or unwrinkled:
      2. In a smooth manner
      3. To remove wrinkles from by pressing
      1. To remove dirt or grease from (cloth or fibers) by means of a detergent.
      2. To clean things by vigorous rubbing and polishing
      3. To clean, polish, or wash by scrubbing vigorously:
      1. To make usable or attractive again; refurbish
      2. To restore to attractive or serviceable condition; renovate.
      3. To brighten by cleaning or rubbing; polish.
      1. To treat (a cut edge, esp. of a garment), as by pinking, serging, or binding, in order to prevent raveling
      2. To give (cloth, leather, wood, etc.) a desired surface effect
      3. To consume all of; use up:
      1. To cover with varnish; brush varnish on
      2. To give a smooth and glossy finish to.
      3. To impart a smooth surface or appearance to, as with varnish
      1. To give a bright sheen or luster to.
      2. To smooth over or cover up (an error, inadequacy, fault, etc.); make appear right by specious argument or by minimizing
      3. To apply a gloss to:
    See also:

    glaze

    shine

Synonym Study

  • Shine implies making bright and clean by polishing to shine shoes
  • Buff implies polishing with a stick or tool covered with specially treated leather (originally buffalo hide) or with a soft cloth or pad to buff the fingernails
  • Burnish specifically suggests the rubbing of metals to make them bright and lustrous burnished steel
  • Polish implies rubbing, as with a cloth or tool and, often, an abrasive, paste, etc., to produce a smooth or glossy surface to polish silver, glass, furniture, etc.
© WEBSTER’S NEW WORLD® ROGET’S A-Z THESAURUS by Charlton Laird and the editors of Webster’s New World dictionaries. Copyright © 1999 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Sentence Examples

  • "Fingernail polish?" she parroted again.

  • This ill-timed parsimony reacted injuriously upon Polish politics.

  • What sort of Polish mazuwka is this?

  • I suppose they polish him up as they do the guns.

  • The epoch-making victory of the 12th of September 1683 was ultimately decided by the charge of the Polish cavalry led by Sobieski in person.

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Words that mention polish in the Dictionary

Words near polish in the Thesaurus