burnish

[ bur-nish ]

/ ˈbɜr nɪʃ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR burnish ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to polish (a surface) by friction.

to make smooth and bright.

Engraving. to flatten and enlarge the dots of (a halftone) by rubbing with a tool.

noun

gloss; brightness; luster: the burnish of brass andirons.

Nearby words

burning, burning bush, burning ghat, burning glass, burning question, burnish, burnisher, burnley, burnoose, burnous, burnout

Origin of burnish

1275–1325; Middle English burnissh < Anglo-French burniss-, Middle French bruniss- (long stem of burnir, brunir to darken, polish), equivalent to brun- brown + -iss- -ish²

SYNONYMS FOR burnish

1 buff, shine.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR burnish ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

bur·nish·a·ble, adjectivebur·nish·ment, nounun·bur·nished, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for burnished

As a kid, you'd admired pictures of knights in burnished suits of armor.
Whatever You Do Someone Will Die. A Short Story About Impossible Choices in Iraq|Nathan Bradley Bethea|August 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We can never know how much of this was innate in him, or how much of was shaped and burnished in a dark, solitary cell.
Full Text of President Obama's Eulogy for Nelson Mandela|The Daily Beast|December 10, 2013|DAILY BEAST
There was a once-grand dining room with mirrored walls and burnished chandeliers.
Welcome to Woolwich, Where English Terrorists Say Sorry While They Murder|Peter Pomerantsev|May 23, 2013|DAILY BEAST
But if Reagan burnished the anti-intellectual brand, Bush has now wrecked it.
Revenge of the Nerds|Peter Beinart|December 8, 2008|DAILY BEAST

A few specimens of burnished pottery were found in the caves.
Archology and the Bible|George A. Barton
The sun had now risen, his bright rays glancing across the placid water, which shone like a sheet of burnished gold.
The Settlers|William H. G. Kingston
His saddle was of burnished gold, his bridle 20 of shining gold chains.
Story Hour Readings: Seventh Year|E.C. Hartwell
She did not encourage Joan to preserve a burnished mind, but she took to astrology like a duck to water.
The Romance of His Life|Mary Cholmondeley
And yet this burnished vessel never professed sinless perfection.
The Way of Salvation in the Lutheran Church|G. H. Gerberding

British Dictionary definitions for burnished

burnish

/ (ˈbɜːnɪʃ) /

verb

to make or become shiny or smooth by friction; polish

noun

a shiny finish; lustre

Derived Forms

burnishable, adjectiveburnisher, noun

Word Origin for burnish

C14 burnischen, from Old French brunir to make brown, from brun brown

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012