Adjacent Words

Polish definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

PO'LISH, a. Pertaining to Poland, a level country on the south of Russia and the Baltic.
POL'ISH, v.t. [L. polio.]
1. To make smooth and glossy, usually by friction; as, to polish glass, marble, metals and the like.
2. To refine; to wear off rudeness, rusticity and coarseness; to make elegant and polite; as, to polish life or manners.
The Greeks were polished by the Asiatics and Egyptians.
POL'ISH, v.i. To become smooth; to receive a gloss; to take a smooth and glossy surface.
Steel will polish almost as white and bright as silver.
POL'ISH, n. A smooth, glossy surface produced by friction.
Another prism of clearer glass and better polish seemed free from veins.
1. Refinement; elegance of manners.
What are these wond'rous civilizing arts,
This Roman polish?

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: of or relating to Poland or its people or culture; "Polish sausage" n
1: the property of being smooth and shiny [syn: polish, gloss, glossiness, burnish]
2: a highly developed state of perfection; having a flawless or impeccable quality; "they performed with great polish"; "I admired the exquisite refinement of his prose"; "almost an inspiration which gives to all work that finish which is almost art"--Joseph Conrad [syn: polish, refinement, culture, cultivation, finish]
3: a preparation used in polishing
4: the Slavic language of Poland v
1: make (a surface) shine; "shine the silver, please"; "polish my shoes" [syn: polish, smooth, smoothen, shine]
2: improve or perfect by pruning or polishing; "refine one's style of writing" [syn: polish, refine, fine-tune, down]
3: bring to a highly developed, finished, or refined state; "polish your social manners" [syn: polish, round, round off, polish up, brush up]

Merriam Webster's

I. adjective Etymology: Pole Date: 1592 of, relating to, or characteristic of Poland, the Poles, or Polish II. noun Date: 1671 the Slavic language of the Poles

Merriam Webster's

I. verb Etymology: Middle English polisshen, from Anglo-French poliss-, stem of polir, from Latin polire Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. to make smooth and glossy usually by friction ; burnish 2. to smooth, soften, or refine in manners or condition 3. to bring to a highly developed, finished, or refined state ; perfect intransitive verb to become smooth or glossy by or as if by friction • polisher noun II. noun Date: 1679 1. a. a smooth glossy surface ; luster b. freedom from rudeness or coarseness ; culture c. a state of high development or refinement 2. the action or process of polishing 3. a preparation that is used to produce a gloss and often a color for the protection and decoration of a surface <furniture polish> <nail polish>

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. & n. --adj. 1 of or relating to Poland. 2 of the Poles or their language. --n. the language of Poland. Phrases and idioms: Polish notation Math. a system of formula notation without brackets and punctuation. Etymology: POLE + -ISH(1)

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v. 1 tr. & intr. make or become smooth or glossy by rubbing. 2 (esp. as polished adj.) refine or improve; add finishing touches to. --n. 1 a substance used for polishing. 2 smoothness or glossiness produced by friction. 3 the act or an instance of polishing. 4 refinement or elegance of manner, conduct, etc. Phrases and idioms: polish off finish (esp. food) quickly. polish up revise or improve (a skill etc.). Derivatives: polishable adj. polisher n. Etymology: ME f. OF polir f. L polire polit-

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Polish Pol"ish, a. [From Pole a Polander.] Of or pertaining to Poland or its inhabitants. -- n. The language of the Poles.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Polish Pol"ish, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Polished; p. pr. & vb. n. Polishing.] [F. polir, L. polire. Cf. Polite, -ish] 1. To make smooth and glossy, usually by friction; to burnish; to overspread with luster; as, to polish glass, marble, metals, etc. 2. Hence, to refine; to wear off the rudeness, coarseness, or rusticity of; to make elegant and polite; as, to polish life or manners. --Milton. To polish off, to finish completely, as an adversary. [Slang] --W. H. Russell.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Polish Pol"ish, v. i. To become smooth, as from friction; to receive a gloss; to take a smooth and glossy surface; as, steel polishes well. --Bacon.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Polish Pol"ish, n. 1. A smooth, glossy surface, usually produced by friction; a gloss or luster. Another prism of clearer glass and better polish. --Sir I. Newton. 2. Anything used to produce a gloss. 3. Fig.: Refinement; elegance of manners. This Roman polish and this smooth behavior. --Addison.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(polishes, polishing, polished) 1. Polish is a substance that you put on the surface of an object in order to clean it, protect it, and make it shine. The still air smelt faintly of furniture polish. ...soap powders, detergents, and polishes. N-MASS 2. If you polish something, you put polish on it or rub it with a cloth to make it shine. Each morning he shaved and polished his shoes... VERB: V n • Polish is also a noun. He gave his counter a polish with a soft duster. N-SING: a N • polished ...a highly polished floor. ADJ 3. If you say that someone has polish, you mean that they show confidence and know how to behave socially. N-UNCOUNT [approval] 4. If you say that a performance or piece of work has polish, you mean that it is of a very high standard. The opera lacks the polish of his later work. N-UNCOUNT [approval] 5. If you polish your technique, performance, or skill at doing something, you work on improving it. They just need to polish their technique. VERB: V n • Polish up means the same as polish. Polish up your writing skills on a one-week professional course. PHRASAL VERB: V P n (not pron) 6. see also polished, French polish, nail polish

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

1. Polish means belonging or relating to Poland, or to its people, language, or culture. ADJ 2. Polish is the language spoken in Poland.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. a. 1. Burnish, furbish, levigate, rub up, brighten, make glossy. 2. Refine, civilize, make elegant. II. n. 1. Lustre, brightness, brilliance, brilliancy, splendor. 2. Grace, refinement, accomplishment, elegance.

1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue

To polish the king's iron with one's eyebrows; to be in gaol, and look through the iron grated windows. To polish a bone; to eat a meal. Come and polish a bone with me; come and eat a dinner or supper with me.

Moby Thesaurus

Atticism, abradant, abrasive, acculturation, acquired taste, aluminum oxide, ameliorate, appreciation of excellence, appropriateness, auto polish, beautify, better, breeding, brighten, brighten up, brightness, brilliance, brush up, buff, bump off, burnish, chasteness, chastity, choiceness, civility, civilization, civilized taste, civilizedness, clarity, classicalism, classicism, clean, clearness, colcothar, comeliness, con, conclude, consume, correct, correctness, corundum, crocus, cultivate, cultivated taste, cultivation, culture, daintiness, delicacy, destroy, develop, dignity, directness, discrimination, dispatch, dispose of, distinction, do away with, do in, dress, ease, eat, education, elaborate, elegance, elegancy, eliminate, embellish, emend, emery, emery board, emery paper, enculturation, end, enhance, enlightenment, evolve, excellence, fastidiousness, felicitousness, felicity, file, finesse, finish, fittingness, fix, flow, flowing periods, fluency, freshen, furbish, furbish up, garnet, genteelness, gentility, gentlemanlikeness, gentlemanliness, gentleness, glance, glaze, gleam, glint, gloss, glow, good breeding, good taste, grace, gracefulness, gracility, graciosity, graciousness, improve, kill, ladylikeness, lawn-roller, learn, limpidity, liquidate, lucidity, luster, mature, mend, murder, nail file, naturalness, neatness, niceness, nicety, oil, patina, pellucidity, perfect, perspicuity, plainness, polish off, polish up, polishes, propriety, pumice, pumice stone, purity, put away, quality, radiance, rasp, refine, refinement, renovate, repair, restraint, retouch, review, revive, ripen, roller, rottenstone, rouge, round, rub, rub out, rub up, sand, sandblast, sandpaper, scour, scrub, season, seemliness, sheen, shine, shoe polish, silicon carbide, silver polish, simplicity, slay, sleek, sleeker, slick, slick down, slicker, smooth, smoother, smoothness, socialization, sophistication, sparkle, spruce, spruce up, straightforwardness, study, subtlety, taste, tastefulness, terminate, terseness, tone up, touch up, unaffectedness, vamp, vamp up, varnish, wax, wolf down