refinement
Americannoun
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refinements
plural
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fineness or elegance of feeling, taste, manners, language, etc.
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an instance of refined feeling, manners, etc.
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the act or process of refining.
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the quality or state of being refined.
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a subtle point or distinction.
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subtle reasoning.
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an improved, higher, or extreme form of something.
a refinement of the old system.
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Mathematics. a set whose elements include the elements of a given set.
noun
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the act of refining or the state of being refined
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a fine or delicate point, distinction, or expression; a subtlety
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fineness or precision of thought, expression, manners, etc; polish or cultivation
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a device, change, adaptation, etc, designed to improve performance or increase efficiency
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of refinement
Explanation
Do you know which fork is for your salad and which one is for dessert? Then you have some refinement — good manners and taste. Things that go through a process of refinement have been refined; they've lost their rough edges. For people, this means they have good manners, and for substances like oil and sugar, it means that their impurities have been removed. With refinement, things and people become more acceptable: the sugar's refinement makes it appropriate to serve at a fancy party, and your refinement makes you a perfect guest there.
Vocabulary lists containing refinement
"A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift
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Vocabulary from "John L. O'Sullivan on 'Manifest Destiny' " from 1839
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"The Mixer" by P.G. Wodehouse
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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:
Each additional symbol brought the opportunity to bring greater refinement of rhythm, feeling and clarity to the written word.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Silicon technology has benefited from decades of refinement, allowing manufacturers to produce dielectric materials capable of controlling progressively smaller devices.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026
The controversy is a "reminder", the article said, that "mere superficial popularity will not only fail to generate sustainable profits, but also lead to a loss of cultural refinement".
From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026
"We want to bring glamour, we want to bring refinement, we want to bring grace back," Riyadh Air CEO Tony Douglas told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026
So we were put through every conceivable refinement of parade-ground soldiering till we often howled with rage.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
It still needs a generation or two of hardware and software refinements to be the promised jack-of-many-trades device.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026
There have been multiple versions and refinements made to the fiscal rules by successive governments including the current one.
From BBC ● May 18, 2026
Medvedev believes the core mechanism behind the zebra stripes is now largely understood, though further refinements may improve precision.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 28, 2026
On Tuesday, Bass’ office did not immediately explain what the refinements were.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 7, 2026
She began to plan all sorts of refinements: upper platforms to store food, a rope ladder, a barrier of thornbushes, a thatched roof to keep out rain.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
