refine
re·fine/ɹɪˈfaɪn/verb
refine is spelled R-E-F-I-N-E: 6 letters and 2 syllables (re·fine). It appears 1.9 times per million words in written English, the 20,101st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, refine means “To purify; reduce to a fine, unmixed, or pure state; to free from impurities” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in refine?
| Letters | 6: R-E-F-I-N-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: re·fine |
| In writing | 1.9 times per million words; the 20,101st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is refine?
Refine appears 1.9 times per million words in written English, the 20,101st most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce refine?
- /ɹɪˈfaɪn/
Refine has 2 syllables, split re·fine in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-refine.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Naomi_Persephone_Amethyst_(NaomiAmethyst)-refine.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of refine
- refines present, singular, he/she/it
- refining participle, present
- refined participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does refine mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To purify; reduce to a fine, unmixed, or pure state; to free from impurities.
to refine gold
- 2
To become pure; to be cleared of impure matter.
- 3
To purify of coarseness, vulgarity, inelegance, etc.; to polish.
to refine someone's manners
- 4
To improve in accuracy, delicacy, or excellence.
- 5
To make nice or subtle.
to refine thought
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Refine in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | raffiner |
| Portuguese | refinar , purificar |
| Spanish | refinar , perfeccionar |
| German | verfeinern |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does refine come from?
From re- + fine.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).