v. 1
To shine; to make a surface very smooth or shiny by rubbing, cleaning, or grinding.
He polished up the chrome until it gleamed.
v. 2
To refine; remove imperfections from.
The band has polished its performance since the last concert.
n. 1
Cleanliness; smoothness, shininess.
The floor was waxed to a high polish.
n. 2
Refinement; cleanliness in performance or presentation.
The lecturer showed a lot of polish at his last talk.

Related words

Word family: polished polisher polishing polite
Phrases: polish off polish up nail polish shoe polish polish remover polish a turd polish up on nail polish remover

Forms

Plural: polishes → finishes, glosses, sheens, lusters…
Past participle: polished
e.g. polished → shined, burnished, waxed, varnished…

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

3 letters: rub¹, wax¹
4 letters: down¹, file¹, bone¹, buff¹, hone¹
5 letters: class¹, round¹, style¹, grace¹, shine¹, gloss¹, glaze¹, sheen¹
6 letters: finish², smooth¹, refine², luster², lustre²
7 letters: perfect², culture², varnish², panache², burnish², furbish²
8 letters: elegance³, brighten², humanize³, civilize³, humanise, civilise, smoothen²
9 letters: shininess
10 letters: brightness², brilliance², refinement³, smoothness², glossiness
11 letters: cultivation⁴
12 letters: sophisticate⁴

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (finish² = 2 syllables).