1. renovates and improves (a house or district) so that it conforms to middle-class taste, typically displacing lower-income residents
Usage: third person singular present tense of ‘gentrify’

Examples

• The city gentrifies old neighborhoods by encouraging upscale development.
• As the area gentrifies, longtime residents worry about rising rents.
• The developer gentrifies historic buildings into luxury condos.
• When a neighborhood gentrifies, local businesses often change to serve wealthier customers.
• The community fears that new investment gentrifies their affordable district.
• Urban renewal sometimes gentrifies areas faster than residents can adapt.