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

At the time of our stay, the kitchen was being refurbished, so there was no room service. —Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 31 Mar. 2026

The foundation has helped thousands and thousands of kids in the region through refurbishing basketball courts, hosting basketball clinics and promoting academic enrichment. —Kerri Corrado, CBS News, 27 Mar. 2026

The school has also retained an architect to refurbish existing spaces that will be used by girls. —Jennah Pendleton, Sacbee.com, 25 Mar. 2026

Costumes, props, and set pieces have since been used to refurbish the Emily Dickinson Museum in Amherst, MA. —Joe Otterson, Variety, 25 Mar. 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