Meaning & use
refurbished house
Last updated
Meanings
phrasecountable
a house that has been repaired, cleaned, and given new paint, fittings, or equipment so it looks fresh again.
Grammar: Countable phrase: say a refurbished house or several refurbished houses; the plural -s goes on 'house'.
Patterns
- a refurbished house
- buy a refurbished house
- live in a refurbished house
They bought a refurbished house near the station and moved in last spring.
The refurbished house has a new kitchen, a new roof, and fresh paint inside.
Refurbished houses in this area usually sell faster than ones that need work.
phrasebefore a noun
used about a house that has been made to look new again but was not built from scratch.
Grammar: Used before the noun it describes; it is not used after a linking verb, where you would say 'The house was refurbished.'
Patterns
- a refurbished house
- a newly refurbished house
A newly refurbished house stood at the end of the street, bright with new windows.
The agent showed us a refurbished house that still kept its old wooden floors.
phrasecountable
a house that has been updated after a period of use or damage, rather than left in its old condition.
Grammar: Countable; often used with words like fully, completely, or recently before 'refurbished'.
Patterns
- a fully refurbished house
- a recently refurbished house
- a completely refurbished house
After the flood, they moved back into a fully refurbished house.
We rented a recently refurbished house while our own place was being repaired.
Word forms
| plural | refurbished houses |
|---|
Common combinations
- a fully refurbished house
- The charity now runs a fully refurbished house for six older residents.
- a newly refurbished house
- A newly refurbished house on the corner is open for viewing this weekend.
- buy a refurbished house
- They decided to buy a refurbished house instead of building one.
- move into a refurbished house
- We moved into a refurbished house just before the winter.
- a refurbished house for sale
- There is a refurbished house for sale at the end of our road.
Synonyms and how they differ
- renovated house
- Very close in meaning; 'renovated' often suggests restoring an older building, while 'refurbished' stresses freshening and modernizing what is already there.
- restored house
- Use this when the house has been returned to an earlier, often historic, condition; 'refurbished' does not promise the original style.
- updated house
- More general and less formal; it can mean only small changes, whereas a refurbished house has had real repair and improvement work.
Opposites
Word family
- refurbish verb
- to repair and improve a building or room so it looks new again.
- refurbishment noun
- the work of repairing and improving a building or room.
- refurbished adjective
- having been repaired and improved, as in refurbished furniture.
Commonly confused: refurbished house or furnished house? refurbished house or refinished house?
refurbished house vs furnished house
A furnished house comes with furniture and equipment already in it; a refurbished house has been repaired and improved, whether or not furniture is included.
refurbished house vs refinished house
'Refinished' refers mainly to a new surface on wood or floors, while 'refurbished' covers wider repair and modernization.
Practice
Which sentence uses the phrase correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Refurbished' is a past participle used before the noun, so 'a refurbished house' is correct. Option 2 puts it after the noun, which English does not allow here; options 3 and 4 use the wrong form of the word.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “refurbished house”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.