polish
verb (used with object)
to make smooth and glossy, especially by rubbing or friction.
polish
1 American
[pol-ish]
/ ˈpɒl ɪʃ /
verb (used with object)
-
polishes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
polished,
past participle, past
-
polishing
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
polishes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
polished,
past participle, past
-
polishing
present participle
-
to become smooth and glossy through polishing.
a flooring that polishes easily.
-
Archaic. to become refined or elegant.
noun
-
polishes
plural
verb phrase
-
polish up to improve; refine.
She took lessons to polish up her speech.
-
polish off
-
to finish or dispose of quickly.
They polished off a gallon of ice cream between them.
-
to subdue or get rid of someone.
The fighter polished off his opponent in the first round.
-
Polish
2
American
[poh-lish]
/ ˈpoʊ lɪʃ /
adjective
noun
polish
1
British
/ ˈpɒlɪʃ /
verb
-
to make or become smooth and shiny by rubbing, esp with wax or an abrasive
-
(tr) to make perfect or complete
-
to make or become elegant or refined
noun
-
a finish or gloss
-
the act of polishing or the condition of having been polished
-
a substance used to produce a smooth and shiny, often protective surface
-
elegance or refinement, esp in style, manner, etc
Polish
2
British
/ ˈpəʊlɪʃ /
adjective
noun
polish
Idioms
Synonym Usage
Polish, gloss, luster, sheen refer to a smooth, shining, or bright surface from which light is reflected. Polish suggests the smooth, bright reflection often produced by friction: rubbed to a high polish. Gloss suggests a superficial, hard smoothness characteristic of lacquered, varnished, or enameled surfaces: a gloss on oilcloth, on paper. Luster denotes the characteristic quality of the light reflected from the surfaces of certain materials (pearls, silk, wax, freshly cut metals, etc.): a pearly luster. Sheen, sometimes poetical, suggests a glistening brightness such as that reflected from the surface of silk or velvet, or from furniture oiled and hand-polished: a rich velvety sheen.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
anti-Polishnoun
-
polishernoun
-
prepolishnoun
-
repolishverb
-
depolishverb (used with object)
-
interpolishverb (used with object)
-
overpolishverb (used with object)
-
non-Polishadjective
-
polishableadjective
-
pre-Polishadjective
-
pro-Polishadjective
-
pseudo-Polishadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
polishsimple
-
polishessimple
-
have polishedperfect
-
has polishedperfect
-
am polishingprogressive
-
are polishingprogressive
-
is polishingprogressive
-
have been polishingperfect progressive
-
has been polishingperfect progressive
Past
-
polishedsimple
-
had polishedperfect
-
was polishingprogressive
-
were polishingprogressive
-
had been polishingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of polish1
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English polishen, from Middle French poliss-, long stem of polir, from Latin polīre “to polish”; see -ish 2
Origin of Polish2
Explanation
When you polish something, you rub and buff it until it shines. You might need to polish your reading glasses from time to time. You might polish your wooden coffee table with a cloth or polish beach stones until they gleam. Polish is also a noun, meaning either the spray you use to shine up your furniture or the shininess itself: "The polish on that desk is unbelievable — I can almost see my reflection in it!" There is also a figurative kind of polish, a sort of elegance or clarity you might see in well-edited writing or a fashionable woman sliding into a taxi.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
But like the iridescent glitter in her campaign-matched chrome polish, the meaning shifts with the viewer’s perspective.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026
“He can fool you with his polish upwards,” the memo notes, adding that Flores has “little people skills, lacks self-awareness and can sometimes exhibit erratic behavior.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
Still, theater critics zinging Zacharia’s lack of polish are missing the point.
From Slate ● Oct. 15, 2026
Some converts say they're ditching polish as a way of rebelling against an entrenched female beauty standard or to save time and money.
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026
I guess I should get some polish for it.
From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon
Her challenger is Hüller, who has two movies, the Austrian ‘Rose’ and the Polish ‘Fatherland.’
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026
Michał Nowakowski, co-CEO of The Witcher developer CD Projekt Red, said BioWare had been "a massive part" of the Polish studio's history, "sharing their wisdom" since working to release Baldur's Gate in Eastern Europe.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
Born into a Polish aristocratic Catholic family with ornate palaces and substantive political influence, d’Ornano descended from the Radziwill line of Polish princes to Prussian kings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2026
"Valor Mortis" by the Polish studio One More Level shows Napoleon's 19th century army fuelled by a mysterious substance that makes them stronger before turning them into zombies and half-animal creatures.
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026
I was pleased to hear good Polish, even if it was with a German accent.
From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron
In the jewellery workshop, quieter than the Royal Mint's coin-pressing halls where he used to work, 63-year-old John Powell carefully polishes a ring.
From Barron's ● Aug. 4, 2026
One especially useful touch for travelers: the spa offers quick-drying traditional polishes, making it easier to get back to sightseeing without worrying about smudges.
From Salon ● Jun. 11, 2026
Commercial nail polishes were used to test additives for formula compatibility and electrical performance.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 26, 2026
The phrase is self-explanatory, but Ms. Farr is insistent, so in her reading the woman polishes silver “until it gleamed.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 12, 2026
He takes off his thick-rimmed glasses, fitted by a Calcutta optometrist, polishes the lenses with the cotton handkerchief he always keeps in his pocket, A for Ashoke embroidered by his mother in light blue thread.
From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri
Its mirror was ground and polished with extraordinary precision—to the wrong shape, because a lens in the test device sat 1.3 millimeters out of place.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
But the underlying sentiment is just as base as that of the less polished extremists.
From Slate ● Nov. 3, 2026
Thousands of polished stone axes and other tools have been discovered, along with finely made pottery, sometimes decorated with painted patterns.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 31, 2026
While polished and conservative, her style of dress has included classic, arguably nostalgic touches, including denim and bandanas for more casual appearances.
From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026
A night on the town meant a nice waistcoat and jacket, polished shoes, and bowler hats.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
“I think he deserves all the praise and deserves to be with us,” said national team coach Mauricio Pochettino, who’s not exactly known for polishing the egos of shiny prospects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
"I was a gardener, a handyman, doing newspaper rounds at the beginning, also polishing floors in a pub," Dambrauskas said.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
Short’s polishing of even so-so lines into comedy gold earned him nominations for every season of “Only Murders” so far.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
When it offered him half a song, he said, “Good enough” — without even bothering to run it through a few rounds of polishing.
From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026
José Luis is always lounging around the house in an undershirt, listening to norteñas and polishing his pointy crocodile-skin boots.
From "I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter" by Erika L. Sánchez
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
