refurbish

verb

re·​fur·​bish ri-ˈfər-bish 

refurbished; refurbishing; refurbishes

transitive verb

: to brighten or freshen up : renovate

refurbisher noun

refurbishment

ri-ˈfər-bish-mənt 

noun

Did you know?

As seems proper given how English prefixes work, before you could refurbish something you could furbish it. That shorter word was borrowed into Middle English in the 14th century from Anglo-French as furbisshen; it shares a distant relative with the Old High German verb furben, meaning "to polish." In its earliest uses furbish also meant "to polish," but it developed an extended sense of "to renovate" shortly before English speakers created refurbish with the same meaning in the 17th century. These days refurbish is the more common of the two words, although furbish does continue to be used.

Examples of refurbish in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Trump had refurbished two ornamental fountains, for seventeen million dollars, and wants the park to have forty-seven maple trees, in homage to himself. — Antonia Hitchens, New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2026

Returning the boosters to land allows SpaceX to recover and refurbish them to be reused on a future launch. — Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 31 Aug. 2026

The famed Magic Castle will supply the artists and show direction at Knott’s Scary Farm recently refurbished Bird Cage Theater. — Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 29 Aug. 2026

Visitors will be able to see five pieces by the late Dora Natella, the renowned sculptor who taught at Indiana University South Bend, and 21 beloved outdoor sculptures that have recently been refurbished. — Domenica Bongiovanni, IndyStar, 28 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1611, in the meaning defined above

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Kids Definition

refurbish

verb

re·​fur·​bish ri-ˈfər-bish 

: to brighten or freshen up : renovate

refurbish an old house

refurbishment

-mənt 

noun