overrefinement


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o·ver·re·fine

 (ō′vər-rĭ-fīn′)
tr.v. o·ver·re·fined, o·ver·re·fin·ing, o·ver·re·fines
To refine beyond a desired or appropriate point.
o′ver·re·fined′ adj.
o′ver·re·fine′ment n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.overrefinement - the act of distorting something so it seems to mean something it was not intended to mean
twisting, straining, torture, distortion
falsification, misrepresentation - a willful perversion of facts
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
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References in periodicals archive ?
Clifford's transgressive "nature" is not identified as homosexual, though he is associated with stigmatized traits that later in the nineteenth century would be attributed to the figure of the homosexual: sophisticated tastes, overrefinement, luxury, effeminacy, and the potential for decadence.
Clifford's dim, unsatisfactory elegance
overeducation and overrefinement and that they could revivify themselves
"Vital contact": Eugene O'Neill and the working class
In contrast, in the non-abstract world where the curves of economic policy, politics, and legislation-making intersect, the creation of an inflection point tends to bring with it a discernible amount of overreaction, a palpable amount of overrefinement.
Fasten your seat belts: S-O overshoots the mark. So guess who is in for a bumpy night? (Quiddities)

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