To upcycle something is to take a used object and adapt it in an innovative1 way to a new function. Unlike recycling, which usually involves breaking down the material an object is made from, before it is made into something else , upcycling involves using something in a new way without doing anything to reprocess the material it's made from. As well as being more energy efficient, another major benefit of upcycling is that it makes it possible to reuse items made of materials which couldn't be dealt with by conventional recycling methods. When something is upcycled, nothing, or very little, is discarded, with every component2 part or material having a potential use.
将某样东西upcycle（即升级改造）其实就是用革新的方法将它改造以让其发挥新的效果。循环借助（recycling）一般是将一样东西的全部材料完全拆解，然后将它制作成别的东西（由此消耗了更多能源），与其不一样的是，升级改造（upcycling）不会对原材料进行任何再处置，而是换个方法借助它们。除去节能以外，升级改造的另一个优点就是可以让那些传统循环方法没办法收购处置的物品第三被借助。某样东西在被升级改造的过程中，极少或几乎没材料会被废弃，每一个部件都有它潜在的作用。
An upcycled product is generally of higher value than the materials or objects used to create it hence examples like metal ring pulls becoming jewellery items such as brooches or earrings3, low-value coins becoming cufflinks, and so on.
升级改造后的商品一般比改造前的物品或材料有更高的价值，譬如：金属拉环做成的胸针或耳环等装饰品，低面值的硬币做成的衬衣袖链扣等等。
