REFINING

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does refining mean? 

• REFINING (noun)
  The noun REFINING has 1 sense:

1. the process of removing impurities (as from oil or metals or sugar etc.)

  Familiarity information: REFINING used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• REFINING (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The process of removing impurities (as from oil or metals or sugar etc.)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural processes

Synonyms:

purification; refinement; refining

Hypernyms ("refining" is a kind of...):

processing (preparing or putting through a prescribed procedure)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "refining"):

rectification ((chemistry) the process of refinement or purification of a substance by distillation)

Derivation:

refine (reduce to a fine, unmixed, or pure state; separate from extraneous matter or cleanse from impurities)

 Context examples 

They also include sugars added during food processing and refining.

(Carbohydrates, NIH)

The act of improving by expanding or enlarging or refining.

(Development, NCI Thesaurus)

Additional observations of asteroid 2013 TX68 have been obtained, refining its orbital path and moving the date of the asteroid's Earth flyby from March 5 to March 8.

(Small Asteroid to Pass Close to Earth March 8, NASA)

It is a byproduct of zinc refining and is used to make batteries, pigments, plastics, alloys, and electroplate.

(Cadmium, NCI Dictionary)

Benzene is found in crude oils and as a by-product of oil-refining processes.

(Benzene, NCI Thesaurus)

Hexachloroethane was used as an anthelmintic to treat fascioliasis in cattle and sheep, in refining aluminum alloys, in smoke bombs and pyrotechnic and as a degassing agent and polymer additive.

(Hexachloroethane, NCI Thesaurus)

A study reveals that local and regional factors influence the Ross Ice Shelf's stability, and highlights connections between the Ross and Amundsen Seas, refining predictions of how climate may influence melt rates in the future.

(Study in Antarctic waters reveals why Ross Ice Shelf melts in summer, National Science Foundation)