Definition

Verb (transitive and intransitive): 1. To refresh or improve one's knowledge or skill in a particular area: To practice or study something again in order to regain or improve proficiency that may have been forgotten or become rusty. 2. To make neat, clean, or tidy: To give something a quick cleaning or grooming to improve its appearance. (This meaning is less common for the phrasal verb itself and is often implied through the base word 'brush').

Usage and Examples

• Verb (refresh knowledge/skill):
  • I need to brush up my Spanish before my trip to Madrid.
  • She's brushing up on her coding skills for the new job.
  • He decided to brush up on the rules before the tournament.

Advanced Usage

• The phrasal verb is often used with the preposition "on" when referring to a subject or skill: .
• It implies a process of renewal or re-acquaintance rather than learning something completely new from the beginning.
• It can be used in a professional context (e.g., brushing up on industry standards) or a personal one (e.g., brushing up on a hobby).

Variants and Related Words

• Brush-up (noun): An act or instance of refreshing one's knowledge or skill.
  • I took a quick French brush-up course.
• Polish up: A near-synonymous phrasal verb meaning to improve or perfect a skill.
• Refresh: To revive or renew knowledge or memory.
• Review: To go over material again, especially for study.

Synonyms

• Refresh (one's memory)
• Review
• Polish up
• Reacquaint oneself with
• Bone up on (informal)

Phrasal Verbs

• Brush up is itself a phrasal verb. Its structure is separable, but it is very commonly used with "on" as a prepositional phrase: .
  • Separable: I brushed my German up before the meeting. / I brushed up my German before the meeting.
  • With preposition: I brushed up on my German before the meeting.

Related Idioms

• To brush up against: This is a different phrasal verb meaning to touch something lightly or briefly in passing, or to have a brief encounter with an idea or experience.
  • The cat brushed up against my leg.
  • During his travels, he brushed up against many different cultures.

Verb

1. bring to a highly developed, finished, or refined state
   • polish your social manners
2. refresh one's memory
   • I reviewed the material before the test