burnish
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.
gloss; brightness; luster: the burnish of brass andirons.
Origin of burnish
1Other words for burnish
Other words from burnish
- bur·nish·a·ble, adjective
- bur·nish·ment, noun
- un·bur·nished, adjective
Words Nearby burnish
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use burnish in a sentence
Sandoval has also managed to burnish his image with a patina of integrity in the scandal-scarred Silver State.
This means that even women who are not employed in factories will get the chance to burnish career-building skills.
At this point, it is the only way for the Brothers to burnish their revolutionary credentials.
For Palin, of course, Israel also offers a chance to burnish her famously weak foreign policy credentials.
In 1961, Kennedy took a Latin American trip to burnish credentials for a 1962 Senate bid.
Sainton, more annoyed than he cared to show, drew his long neglected sword and began to burnish it affectionately.
The Great Mogul | Louis TracyHow strangly does it burnish a Character, and oblige ones Reputation?
A Short View of the Immorality, and Profaneness of the English Stage | Jeremy CollierThe lectern he had done his best to burnish; but it was still a cripple from the fire.
Peccavi | E. W. HornungThey could burnish gold and it stays as bright as when it was first applied to the leaves, even after seven centuries.
Education: How Old The New | James J. WalshWith the pallid first,And next the burnish'd, he so ply'd the gate,As to content me well.
Dante: "The Central Man of All the World" | John T. Slattery
British Dictionary definitions for burnish
/ (ˈbɜːnɪʃ) /
to make or become shiny or smooth by friction; polish
a shiny finish; lustre
Origin of burnish
1Derived forms of burnish
- burnishable, adjective
- burnisher, noun
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
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