refinement

[ ri-fahyn-muhnt ]

noun

1. fineness or elegance of feeling, taste, manners, language, etc.
2. an instance of refined refined feeling, manners, etc.
3. the act or process of refining.
4. the quality or state of being refined. refined.
5. a subtle point or distinction.
6. subtle reasoning.
7. an improved, higher, or extreme form of something:

   a refinement of the old system.

8. Mathematics. a set whose elements include the elements of a given set.

refinement

/ rɪˈfaɪnmənt /

noun

1. the act of refining or the state of being refined
2. a fine or delicate point, distinction, or expression; a subtlety
3. fineness or precision of thought, expression, manners, etc; polish or cultivation
4. a device, change, adaptation, etc, designed to improve performance or increase efficiency

Other Words From

• nonre·finement noun
• prere·finement noun
• self-re·finement noun
• super·re·finement noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of refinement¹

First recorded in 1605–15; refine + -ment

Example Sentences

Deputy mayor Jiri Pospisil said he wanted the city to become a place where "refinement and respect for shared public space are a priority".

From BBC

Instead, there are refinements and variations on existing products.

From New York Times

Overviews in certain ways, launching “additional triggering refinements” to offer more careful responses about health, disabling misleading advice and limiting the inclusion of satire and user responses from forums like Reddit.

From New York Times

Classical approaches were then used to convert the results obtained from the quantum computer, reconstruct the protein with its sidechains, and perform final refinement of the structure with classical molecular mechanics force fields.

From Science Daily

It’s the nature of the position, but all five members of the rotation are obsessive about their preparation leading up to each start and the continued refinement of their pitches for optimal success.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• delicacy
• dignity
• elegance
• erudition
• finesse
• grace
• graciousness
• nicety
• nuance
• precision
• sophistication
• subtlety
• tact