Synonyms for refine
rɪˈfaɪnre·fine

English Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. refine

   Castigate and chastise refer strictly to corporal punishment, tho both are somewhat archaic; correct and punish are often used as euphemisms in preference to either. Punish is distinctly retributive in sense; chastise, partly retributive, and partly corrective; chasten, wholly corrective. Chasten is used exclusively in the spiritual sense, and chiefly of the visitation of God.

   Synonyms:
   afflict, castigate, chasten, chastise, correct, discipline, humble, punish, purify, soften, subdue, try

   Preposition:
   "We are chastened of the Lord," 1 Cor. xi, 32; "they ... chastened us after their own pleasure, but He for our profit," Heb. xii, 10; "chasten in thy hot displeasure," Ps. iv, 7; chasten with pain; by trials and sorrows.

Princeton's WordNetRate these synonyms:2.7 / 3 votes

1. polish, refine, fine-tune, downverb

   improve or perfect by pruning or polishing

   "refine one's style of writing"

   Synonyms:
   land, push down, pull down, polish up, round off, down, go through, elaborate, belt down, rarify, drink down, round, shoot down, cut down, complicate, kill, toss off, smoothen, calibrate, bolt down, rectify, shine, brush up, graduate, tweak, pour down, smooth, pop, devour, fine-tune, knock down, consume, polish

2. complicate, refine, rarify, elaborateverb

   make more complex, intricate, or richer

   "refine a design or pattern"

   Synonyms:
   elaborate, perplex, lucubrate, exposit, polish, down, rarify, fine-tune, work out, rectify, dilate, expatiate, expand, expound, flesh out, complicate, enlarge

3. refineverb

   treat or prepare so as to put in a usable condition

   "refine paper stock"; "refine pig iron"; "refine oil"

   Synonyms:
   rectify, rarify, down, elaborate, complicate, polish, fine-tune

4. refine, rectifyverb

   reduce to a fine, unmixed, or pure state; separate from extraneous matter or cleanse from impurities

   "refine sugar"

   Synonyms:
   elaborate, reclaim, right, regenerate, polish, down, rarify, fine-tune, correct, rectify, reform, amend, remedy, complicate, repair, remediate

5. refineverb

   attenuate or reduce in vigor, strength, or validity by polishing or purifying

   "many valuable nutrients are refined out of the foods in our modern diet"

   Synonyms:
   rectify, rarify, down, elaborate, complicate, polish, fine-tune

6. refineverb

   make more precise or increase the discriminatory powers of

   "refine a method of analysis"; "refine the constant in the equation"

   Synonyms:
   rectify, rarify, down, elaborate, complicate, polish, fine-tune

Matched Categories

1. • Change
   • Purify
   • Treat

Dictionary of English SynonymesRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. refineverb

   Synonyms:
   purify, clarify, fine, defecate

2. refineverb

   Synonyms:
   cultivate, polish, make elegant

3. refineverb

   Synonyms:
   become pure, be clarified

4. refineverb

   Synonyms:
   improve, make improvement

5. refineverb

   Synonyms:
   be over-nice, affect nicety, split hairs, make useless distinctions

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated WordsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. refineverb

   Synonyms:
   purify, defecate, clarify, sublimate, subtilize, sublime, devulgarize, decrassify

PPDB, the paraphrase databaseRate these paraphrases:2.0 / 1 vote

1. List of paraphrases for "refine":

   fine-tune, sharpen, improve, hone, refining, fine-tuning, specify, clarify, develop, improving, refined, enhance

How to pronounce refine?

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How to use refine in a sentence?

1. Kara Robinson:

   Even the negative things that happen to us, we get to choose if that’s something that’s going to define us, or if it’s something that’s going to refine us, it’s about choosing your path forward, taking that power back into your own hands and taking your life back.

2. Martin Weisskopf:

   IXPE will help us test and refine our theories of how the universe works, there may be even more exciting answers ahead than the ones we've hypothesized. Better yet, we may find whole lists of new questions to ask !

3. Franck Marchis:

   I can't wait to point the ELT at Kleopatra, to see if there are more moons and refine their orbits to detect small changes.

4. Jacek Krawiec:

   After many upgrades, we are ready in our refinery in Plock to refine a few dozen of different oil types from all over the world, but we still have to look at the economics, the possibility of having alternatives is significant to us.

5. William Tecumseh Sherman:

   War is cruel and you cannot refine it.