Brush–up

an implement consisting of bristles, hair, or the like, set in or attached to a handle, used for painting, cleaning, polishing, grooming, etc.
one of a pair of devices consisting of long, thin handles with wire bristles attached, used in jazz or dance bands for keeping a soft, rhythmic beat on the trap drums or the cymbals.
the bushy tail of an animal, especially of a fox.
Electricity.

a conductor, often made of carbon or copper or a combination of the two, serving to maintain electric contact between stationary and moving parts of a machine, generator, or other apparatus.
brush discharge.

a feathery or hairy tuft or tassel, as on the tip of a kernel of grain or on a man’s hat.
an act or instance of brushing; application of a brush.
a light, stroking touch.
a brief encounter:
He has already had one brush with the law.
a close approach, especially to something undesirable or harmful:
a brush with disaster.
to sweep, paint, clean, polish, etc., with a brush.
to touch lightly in passing; pass lightly over:
His lips brushed her ear.
to remove by brushing or by lightly passing over:
His hand brushed a speck of lint from his coat.
to move or skim with a slight contact.
brush aside, to disregard; ignore:
Our complaints were simply brushed aside.
brush off, to rebuff; send away:
She had never been brushed off so rudely before.
brush up on, to revive, review, or resume (studies, a skill, etc.):
She’s thinking of brushing up on her tennis.
Also, brush up.
get the brush, to be rejected or rebuffed:
She greeted Jim effusively, but I got the brush.
give the brush, to ignore, rebuff, etc.:
If you’re still angry with him, give him the brush.
Contemporary Examples

11 Hilarious Lady Gaga Wannabes The Daily Beast Video May 29, 2010
Don’t Buy Haley Barbour’s Myth Harold Evans December 19, 2010
Sexier Than ‘50 Shades of Grey’: Naughtiest Bits From 12 Other Erotica Bestsellers July 11, 2012
Eight Ways the Sequester Could Ruin Your Life Caitlin Dickson February 21, 2013

Historical Examples

Baseball Joe in the Big League Lester Chadwick
Happy-Thought Hall F. C. Burnand
Miss Billy Married Eleanor H. Porter
The Burglars’ Club Henry A. Hering
Susan Clegg and Her Neighbors’ Affairs Anne Warner
A Company of Tanks W. H. L. Watson

verb (adverb)
(transitive) often foll by on. to refresh one’s knowledge, skill, or memory of (a subject)
to make (a person or oneself) tidy, clean, or neat as after a journey
noun
(Brit) the act or an instance of tidying one’s appearance (esp in the phrase wash and brush-up)
noun
a device made of bristles, hairs, wires, etc, set into a firm back or handle: used to apply paint, clean or polish surfaces, groom the hair, etc
the act or an instance of brushing
a light stroke made in passing; graze
a brief encounter or contact, esp an unfriendly one; skirmish
the bushy tail of a fox, often kept as a trophy after a hunt, or of certain breeds of dog
an electric conductor, esp one made of carbon, that conveys current between stationary and rotating parts of a generator, motor, etc
a dark brush-shaped region observed when a biaxial crystal is viewed through a microscope, caused by interference between beams of polarized light
verb
(transitive) to clean, polish, scrub, paint, etc, with a brush
(transitive) to apply or remove with a brush or brushing movement: brush the crumbs off the table
(transitive) to touch lightly and briefly
(intransitive) to move so as to graze or touch something lightly
noun
a thick growth of shrubs and small trees; scrub
land covered with scrub
broken or cut branches or twigs; brushwood
wooded sparsely populated country; backwoods
n.
v.

To clean; make neat and clean (1600+)
(also brush up on) To improve, review, or perfect one’s mastery: Brush up your Shakespeare. Start quoting him now (1830s+)

A mustache (1820s+)
A fight; squabble; disagreement: have had drug or alcohol problems, and have experienced a ”brush with the law” (1840s+)

Clean, refurbish, as in We plan to get the house brushed up in time for the party. [ c. 1600 ]
Also, brush up on. Review, refresh one’s memory, as in Nell brushed up on her Spanish before going to Honduras, or I’m brushing up my knowledge of town history before I speak at the club. [ Late 1700s ]

brush aside
brush off
brush up