diff --git a/lib/puppet/application/doc.rb b/lib/puppet/application/doc.rb
index b0c6abe5f27..dab806de454 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/application/doc.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/application/doc.rb
@@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ def rdoc
   end
 
   def other
-    text = String.new
+    text = ''.dup
     with_contents = options[:references].length <= 1
     exit_code = 0
     require_relative '../../puppet/util/reference'
diff --git a/lib/puppet/face/config.rb b/lib/puppet/face/config.rb
index 76765b8d693..f500f224a8d 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/face/config.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/face/config.rb
@@ -82,7 +82,7 @@
     end
 
     when_rendering :console do |to_be_rendered|
-      output = String.new
+      output = ''.dup
       if to_be_rendered.keys.length > 1
         to_be_rendered.keys.sort.each do |setting|
           output << "#{setting} = #{to_be_rendered[setting]}\n"
diff --git a/lib/puppet/face/epp.rb b/lib/puppet/face/epp.rb
index 149e5844d46..47ee58d89c5 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/face/epp.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/face/epp.rb
@@ -367,7 +367,7 @@
   end
 
   def dump_parse(source, filename, options, show_filename = true)
-    output = String.new
+    output = ''.dup
     evaluating_parser = Puppet::Pops::Parser::EvaluatingParser::EvaluatingEppParser.new
     begin
       if options[:validate]
@@ -451,7 +451,7 @@ def render_inline(epp_source, compiler, options)
 
   def render_file(epp_template_name, compiler, options, show_filename, file_nbr)
     template_args = get_values(compiler, options)
-    output = String.new
+    output = ''.dup
     begin
       if show_filename && options[:header]
         output << "\n" unless file_nbr == 1
diff --git a/lib/puppet/face/module/list.rb b/lib/puppet/face/module/list.rb
index 5ffa023bb14..ed47eed4fac 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/face/module/list.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/face/module/list.rb
@@ -74,7 +74,7 @@
       environment     = result[:environment]
       modules_by_path = result[:modules_by_path]
 
-      output = String.new
+      output = ''.dup
 
       warn_unmet_dependencies(environment)
 
@@ -248,7 +248,7 @@ def list_build_tree(list, ancestors=[], parent=nil, params={})
   # Returns a Hash
   #
   def list_build_node(mod, parent, params)
-    str = String.new
+    str = ''.dup
     str << (mod.forge_name ? mod.forge_name.tr('/', '-') : mod.name)
     str << ' (' + colorize(:cyan, mod.version ? "v#{mod.version}" : '???') + ')'
 
diff --git a/lib/puppet/face/parser.rb b/lib/puppet/face/parser.rb
index 7170e4a6702..c773eb9dbf9 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/face/parser.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/face/parser.rb
@@ -174,7 +174,7 @@
   end
 
   def dump_parse(source, filename, options, show_filename = true)
-    output = String.new
+    output = ''.dup
     evaluating_parser = Puppet::Pops::Parser::EvaluatingParser.new
     begin
       if options[:validate]
diff --git a/lib/puppet/indirector/facts/facter.rb b/lib/puppet/indirector/facts/facter.rb
index c4e420fde27..15620659505 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/indirector/facts/facter.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/indirector/facts/facter.rb
@@ -105,7 +105,7 @@ def self.setup_external_search_paths(request)
 
   def find_with_options(request)
     options = request.options
-    options_for_facter = String.new
+    options_for_facter = ''.dup
     options_for_facter += options[:user_query].join(' ')
     options_for_facter += " --config #{options[:config_file]}" if options[:config_file]
     options_for_facter += " --show-legacy" if options[:show_legacy]
diff --git a/lib/puppet/indirector/file_bucket_file/file.rb b/lib/puppet/indirector/file_bucket_file/file.rb
index 15e5c640d29..427b09a1823 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/indirector/file_bucket_file/file.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/indirector/file_bucket_file/file.rb
@@ -58,7 +58,7 @@ def list(request)
       end
       # Setting hash's default value to [], needed by the following loop
       bucket = Hash.new {[]}
-      msg = String.new
+      msg = ''.dup
       # Get all files with mtime between 'from' and 'to'
       Pathname.new(request.options[:bucket_path]).find { |item|
         if item.file? and item.basename.to_s == "paths"
diff --git a/lib/puppet/indirector/indirection.rb b/lib/puppet/indirector/indirection.rb
index 7ac26f923fd..2c3f5f5b781 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/indirector/indirection.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/indirector/indirection.rb
@@ -81,7 +81,7 @@ def expiration
 
   # Generate the full doc string.
   def doc
-    text = String.new
+    text = ''.dup
 
     text << scrub(@doc) << "\n\n" if @doc
 
diff --git a/lib/puppet/module_tool.rb b/lib/puppet/module_tool.rb
index b017818c959..2153760904a 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/module_tool.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/module_tool.rb
@@ -70,7 +70,7 @@ def self.is_module_root?(path)
     # Builds a formatted tree from a list of node hashes containing +:text+
     # and +:dependencies+ keys.
     def self.format_tree(nodes, level = 0)
-      str = String.new
+      str = ''.dup
       nodes.each_with_index do |node, i|
         last_node = nodes.length - 1 == i
         deps = node[:dependencies] || []
diff --git a/lib/puppet/network/formats.rb b/lib/puppet/network/formats.rb
index 67dc8a32a35..112a0161773 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/network/formats.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/network/formats.rb
@@ -156,7 +156,7 @@ def render(datum)
 
     # Simple hash to table
     if datum.is_a?(Hash) && datum.keys.all? { |x| x.is_a?(String) || x.is_a?(Numeric) }
-      output = String.new
+      output = ''.dup
       column_a = datum.empty? ? 2 : datum.map{ |k,v| k.to_s.length }.max + 2
       datum.sort_by { |k,v| k.to_s } .each do |key, value|
         output << key.to_s.ljust(column_a)
@@ -169,7 +169,7 @@ def render(datum)
 
     # Print one item per line for arrays
     if datum.is_a? Array
-      output = String.new
+      output = ''.dup
       datum.each do |item|
         output << item.to_s
         output << "\n"
@@ -227,7 +227,7 @@ def flatten_array(array)
   end
 
   def construct_output(data)
-    output = String.new
+    output = ''.dup
     data.each do |key, value|
       output << "#{key}=#{value}"
       output << "\n"
diff --git a/lib/puppet/network/http/memory_response.rb b/lib/puppet/network/http/memory_response.rb
index caed3de75c7..c109b3942d4 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/network/http/memory_response.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/network/http/memory_response.rb
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ class Puppet::Network::HTTP::MemoryResponse
   attr_reader :code, :type, :body
 
   def initialize
-    @body = String.new
+    @body = ''.dup
   end
 
   def respond_with(code, type, body)
diff --git a/lib/puppet/parameter/value_collection.rb b/lib/puppet/parameter/value_collection.rb
index 341a831fac6..537df0a7e68 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/parameter/value_collection.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/parameter/value_collection.rb
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ def aliasvalue(name, other)
   #
   def doc
     unless defined?(@doc)
-      @doc = String.new
+      @doc = ''.dup
       unless values.empty?
         @doc << "Valid values are "
         @doc << @strings.collect do |value|
diff --git a/lib/puppet/parser/functions.rb b/lib/puppet/parser/functions.rb
index 42503656242..9648f8d4dd1 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/parser/functions.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/parser/functions.rb
@@ -258,7 +258,7 @@ def self.function(name, environment = Puppet.lookup(:current_environment))
   def self.functiondocs(environment = Puppet.lookup(:current_environment))
     autoloader.delegatee.loadall(environment)
 
-    ret = String.new
+    ret = ''.dup
 
     merged_functions(environment).sort { |a,b| a[0].to_s <=> b[0].to_s }.each do |name, hash|
       ret << "#{name}\n#{"-" * name.to_s.length}\n"
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/loader/loader_paths.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/loader/loader_paths.rb
index a4339b5b7b8..cdf4a28e47e 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/loader/loader_paths.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/loader/loader_paths.rb
@@ -88,7 +88,7 @@ def effective_path(typed_name, start_index_in_name)
 
     def typed_name(type, name_authority, relative_path, module_name)
       # Module name is assumed to be included in the path and therefore not added here
-      n = String.new
+      n = ''.dup
       unless extension.empty?
         # Remove extension
         relative_path = relative_path[0..-(extension.length+1)]
@@ -153,7 +153,7 @@ def effective_path(typed_name, start_index_in_name)
     end
 
     def typed_name(type, name_authority, relative_path, module_name)
-      n = String.new
+      n = ''.dup
       n << module_name unless module_name.nil?
       unless extension.empty?
         # Remove extension
@@ -249,7 +249,7 @@ def relative_path
     end
 
     def typed_name(type, name_authority, relative_path, module_name)
-      n = String.new
+      n = ''.dup
       n << module_name unless module_name.nil?
 
       # Remove the file extension, defined as everything after the *last* dot.
@@ -351,7 +351,7 @@ def typed_name(type, name_authority, relative_path, module_name)
       if @init_filenames.include?(relative_path) && !(module_name.nil? || module_name.empty?)
         TypedName.new(type, module_name, name_authority)
       else
-        n = String.new
+        n = ''.dup
         n << module_name unless module_name.nil?
         ext = @extensions.find { |extension| relative_path.end_with?(extension) }
         relative_path = relative_path[0..-(ext.length+1)]
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/lookup/explainer.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/lookup/explainer.rb
index e3244427280..62bd46fbf57 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/lookup/explainer.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/lookup/explainer.rb
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ def to_hash
     end
 
     def explain
-      io = String.new
+      io = ''.dup
       dump_on(io, '', '')
       io
     end
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/lookup/hiera_config.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/lookup/hiera_config.rb
index d679b738c6a..4f7283905a4 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/lookup/hiera_config.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/lookup/hiera_config.rb
@@ -228,7 +228,7 @@ def find_line_matching(regexp, start_line = 1)
       line_number += 1
       next if line_number < start_line
       quote = nil
-      stripped = String.new
+      stripped = ''.dup
       line.each_codepoint do |cp|
         if cp == 0x22 || cp == 0x27 # double or single quote
           if quote == cp
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/model/factory.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/model/factory.rb
index 68a0fe63928..6ce9f37fa49 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/model/factory.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/model/factory.rb
@@ -1112,7 +1112,7 @@ def is_interop_rewriteable?(o)
   end
 
   def self.concat(*args)
-    result = String.new
+    result = ''.dup
     args.each do |e|
       if e.instance_of?(Factory) && e.model_class <= LiteralString
         result << e[KEY_VALUE]
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/model/tree_dumper.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/model/tree_dumper.rb
index e6b2a8bf9f5..0103886fa60 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/model/tree_dumper.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/model/tree_dumper.rb
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ def indent
   end
 
   def format(x)
-    result = String.new
+    result = ''.dup
     parts = format_r(x)
     parts.each_index do |i|
       if i > 0
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/parser/epp_support.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/parser/epp_support.rb
index cae046c2a62..55e502a05e3 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/parser/epp_support.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/parser/epp_support.rb
@@ -183,7 +183,7 @@ def scan(skip_leading=false)
       @skip_leading = skip_leading
 
       return nil if scanner.eos?
-      s = String.new
+      s = ''.dup
       until scanner.eos?
         part = @scanner.scan_until(/(<%)|\z/)
         if @skip_leading
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/parser/evaluating_parser.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/parser/evaluating_parser.rb
index 983f865122e..1b7320bee8d 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/parser/evaluating_parser.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/parser/evaluating_parser.rb
@@ -125,7 +125,7 @@ def quote(x)
   # @return [String] The quoted string
   #
   def self.quote(x)
-    escaped = String.new('"')
+    escaped = '"'.dup
     p = nil
     x.each_char do |c|
       case p
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/parser/pn_parser.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/parser/pn_parser.rb
index ea8f5086489..9922ee6be20 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/parser/pn_parser.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/parser/pn_parser.rb
@@ -218,7 +218,7 @@ def consume_identifier(s)
 
   def consume_string
     s = @pos
-    b = String.new
+    b = ''.dup
     loop do
       c = next_cp
       case c
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/pn.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/pn.rb
index 6dbc3ddb95c..be46c522e50 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/pn.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/pn.rb
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ def ==(o)
   end
 
   def to_s
-    s = String.new
+    s = ''.dup
     format(nil, s)
     s
   end
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/serialization/json_path.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/serialization/json_path.rb
index da7ad441170..eb81e92182f 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/serialization/json_path.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/serialization/json_path.rb
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ module JsonPath
   #
   # @api private
   def self.to_json_path(path)
-    p = String.new('$')
+    p = '$'.dup
     path.each do |seg|
       if seg.nil?
         p << '[null]'
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/time/timespan.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/time/timespan.rb
index b7fcd1aa092..8a37d042091 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/time/timespan.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/time/timespan.rb
@@ -545,7 +545,7 @@ def initialize(format, segments)
       end
 
       def format(timespan)
-        bld = String.new(timespan.negative? ? '-' : '')
+        bld = timespan.negative? ? '-'.dup : ''.dup
         @segments.each { |segment| segment.append_to(bld, timespan) }
         bld
       end
@@ -575,7 +575,7 @@ def regexp
       end
 
       def build_regexp
-        bld = String.new('\A-?')
+        bld = '\A-?'.dup
         @segments.each { |segment| segment.append_regexp(bld) }
         bld << '\z'
         Regexp.new(bld)
@@ -613,7 +613,7 @@ def bad_format_specifier(format, start, position)
 
       def append_literal(bld, codepoint)
         if bld.empty? || !bld.last.is_a?(Format::LiteralSegment)
-          bld << Format::LiteralSegment.new(String.new.concat(codepoint))
+          bld << Format::LiteralSegment.new(''.dup.concat(codepoint))
         else
           bld.last.concat(codepoint)
         end
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/types/ruby_generator.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/types/ruby_generator.rb
index 49db81f757a..9523ad0f552 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/types/ruby_generator.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/types/ruby_generator.rb
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ def create_class(obj)
       if cls.nil?
         rp = key.resolved_parent
         parent_class = rp.is_a?(PObjectType) ? rp.implementation_class : Object
-        class_def = String.new
+        class_def = ''.dup
         class_body(key, EMPTY_ARRAY, class_def)
         cls = Class.new(parent_class)
         cls.class_eval(class_def)
@@ -109,7 +109,7 @@ def module_definition(types, comment, *impl_subst)
     end
 
     # Create class definition of all contained types
-    bld = String.new
+    bld = ''.dup
     start_module(common_prefix, comment, bld)
     class_names = []
     names_by_prefix.each_pair do |seg_array, index_and_name_array|
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/types/string_converter.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/types/string_converter.rb
index 5d0c3976595..c2293929d5e 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/types/string_converter.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/types/string_converter.rb
@@ -701,7 +701,7 @@ def string_PBooleanType(val_type, val, format_map, indentation)
   # Performs post-processing of literals to apply width and precision flags
   def apply_string_flags(f, literal_str)
     if f.left || f.width || f.prec
-      fmt = String.new('%')
+      fmt = '%'.dup
       fmt << '-' if f.left
       fmt << f.width.to_s if f.width
       fmt << '.' << f.prec.to_s if f.prec
@@ -853,7 +853,7 @@ def puppet_quote(str, enforce_double_quotes = false)
     end
 
     # Assume that the string can be single quoted
-    bld = String.new('\'')
+    bld = "'".dup
     bld.force_encoding(str.encoding)
     escaped = false
     str.each_codepoint do |codepoint|
@@ -879,12 +879,12 @@ def puppet_quote(str, enforce_double_quotes = false)
     # If string ended with a backslash, then that backslash must be escaped
     bld << 0x5c if escaped
 
-    bld << '\''
+    bld << "'"
     bld
   end
 
   def puppet_double_quote(str)
-    bld = String.new('"')
+    bld = '"'.dup
     str.each_codepoint do |codepoint|
       case codepoint
       when 0x09
@@ -940,7 +940,7 @@ def string_PArrayType(val_type, val, format_map, indentation)
 
     case format.format
     when :a, :s, :p
-      buf = String.new
+      buf = ''.dup
       if indentation.breaks?
         buf << "\n"
         buf << indentation.padding
@@ -1055,7 +1055,7 @@ def string_PHashType(val_type, val, format_map, indentation)
 
     when :h, :s, :p
       indentation = indentation.indenting(format.alt? || indentation.is_indenting?)
-      buf = String.new
+      buf = ''.dup
       if indentation.breaks?
         buf << "\n"
         buf << indentation.padding
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/types/type_formatter.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/types/type_formatter.rb
index 4af375c18c9..9ca066f1149 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/types/type_formatter.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/types/type_formatter.rb
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ def ruby(ref_ctor)
   # @api public
   #
   def string(t)
-    @bld = String.new
+    @bld = ''.dup
     append_string(t)
     @bld
   end
@@ -64,7 +64,7 @@ def string(t)
   #
   # @api public
   def indented_string(t, indent = 0, indent_width = 2)
-    @bld = String.new
+    @bld = ''.dup
     append_indented_string(t, indent, indent_width)
     @bld
   end
diff --git a/lib/puppet/pops/types/types.rb b/lib/puppet/pops/types/types.rb
index 5c6f1a0c55a..5067475f611 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/pops/types/types.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/pops/types/types.rb
@@ -1713,7 +1713,7 @@ def self.append_flags_group(rx_string, options)
     if options == 0
       rx_string
     else
-      bld = String.new('(?')
+      bld = '(?'.dup
       bld << 'i' if (options & Regexp::IGNORECASE) != 0
       bld << 'm' if (options & Regexp::MULTILINE) != 0
       bld << 'x' if (options & Regexp::EXTENDED) != 0
diff --git a/lib/puppet/provider/nameservice/directoryservice.rb b/lib/puppet/provider/nameservice/directoryservice.rb
index ef64404a966..122f807b8e6 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/provider/nameservice/directoryservice.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/provider/nameservice/directoryservice.rb
@@ -218,8 +218,8 @@ def self.set_password(resource_name, guid, password_hash)
         password_hash_plist = users_plist['ShadowHashData'][0]
         converted_hash_plist = convert_binary_to_hash(password_hash_plist)
       else
-        users_plist['ShadowHashData'] = String.new
-        converted_hash_plist = {'SALTED-SHA512' => String.new}
+        users_plist['ShadowHashData'] = ''.dup
+        converted_hash_plist = {'SALTED-SHA512' => ''.dup}
       end
 
       # converted_hash_plist['SALTED-SHA512'] expects a Base64 encoded
diff --git a/lib/puppet/provider/user/directoryservice.rb b/lib/puppet/provider/user/directoryservice.rb
index edcc59f6109..2cc6e21439d 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/provider/user/directoryservice.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/provider/user/directoryservice.rb
@@ -637,7 +637,7 @@ def base64_decode_string(value)
   def set_salted_sha512(users_plist, shadow_hash_data, value)
     unless shadow_hash_data
       shadow_hash_data = Hash.new
-      shadow_hash_data['SALTED-SHA512'] = String.new
+      shadow_hash_data['SALTED-SHA512'] = ''.dup
     end
     shadow_hash_data['SALTED-SHA512'] = base64_decode_string(value)
     binary_plist = self.class.convert_hash_to_binary(shadow_hash_data)
diff --git a/lib/puppet/reference/configuration.rb b/lib/puppet/reference/configuration.rb
index e521ba8e9ef..2724a7980c9 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/reference/configuration.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/reference/configuration.rb
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
     docs[name] = object
   end
 
-  str = String.new
+  str = ''.dup
   docs.sort { |a, b|
     a[0].to_s <=> b[0].to_s
   }.each do |name, object|
diff --git a/lib/puppet/reference/indirection.rb b/lib/puppet/reference/indirection.rb
index ef3194b1457..972b9985291 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/reference/indirection.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/reference/indirection.rb
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
 require_relative '../../puppet/file_serving/metadata'
 
 reference = Puppet::Util::Reference.newreference :indirection, :doc => "Indirection types and their terminus classes" do
-  text = String.new
+  text = ''.dup
   Puppet::Indirector::Indirection.instances.sort_by(&:to_s).each do |indirection|
     ind = Puppet::Indirector::Indirection.instance(indirection)
     name = indirection.to_s.capitalize
diff --git a/lib/puppet/reports.rb b/lib/puppet/reports.rb
index a117ff802aa..0c6914126be 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/reports.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/reports.rb
@@ -71,7 +71,7 @@ def self.register_report(name, options = {}, &block)
   # Collects the docs for all reports.
   # @api private
   def self.reportdocs
-    docs = String.new
+    docs = ''.dup
 
     # Use this method so they all get loaded
     instance_loader(:report).loadall(Puppet.lookup(:current_environment))
diff --git a/lib/puppet/transaction/report.rb b/lib/puppet/transaction/report.rb
index c91f2b9d84d..03967827ce6 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/transaction/report.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/transaction/report.rb
@@ -369,7 +369,7 @@ def name
   def summary
     report = raw_summary
 
-    ret = String.new
+    ret = ''.dup
     report.keys.sort_by(&:to_s).each do |key|
       ret += "#{Puppet::Util::Metric.labelize(key)}:\n"
 
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util.rb b/lib/puppet/util.rb
index c3a46ec90b3..2772b4e92a6 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util.rb
@@ -409,8 +409,7 @@ def uri_query_encode(query_string)
   def uri_encode(path, opts = { :allow_fragment => false })
     raise ArgumentError.new(_('path may not be nil')) if path.nil?
 
-    # ensure string starts as UTF-8 for the sake of Ruby 1.9.3
-    encoded = String.new.encode!(Encoding::UTF_8)
+    encoded = ''.dup
 
     # parse uri into named matches, then reassemble properly encoded
     parts = path.match(RFC_3986_URI_REGEX)
@@ -454,7 +453,7 @@ def uri_encode(path, opts = { :allow_fragment => false })
 
   def rfc2396_escape(str)
     str.gsub(UNSAFE) do |match|
-      tmp = String.new
+      tmp = ''.dup
       match.each_byte do |uc|
         tmp << sprintf('%%%02X', uc)
       end
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util/diff.rb b/lib/puppet/util/diff.rb
index fadfd14af41..c6fe5d767e9 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util/diff.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util/diff.rb
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ def lcs_diff(data_old, data_new, format=:unified, context_lines=3)
     data_old = data_old.split(/\n/).map! { |e| e.chomp }
     data_new = data_new.split(/\n/).map! { |e| e.chomp }
 
-    output = String.new
+    output = ''.dup
 
     diffs = ::Diff::LCS.diff(data_old, data_new)
     return output if diffs.empty?
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util/execution.rb b/lib/puppet/util/execution.rb
index 42d1b5f51b9..14485c49aed 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util/execution.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util/execution.rb
@@ -162,7 +162,7 @@ def self.execute(command, options = NoOptionsSpecified)
     # do this after processing 'command' array or string
     command_str = '[redacted]' if options[:sensitive]
 
-    user_log_s = String.new
+    user_log_s = ''.dup
     if options[:uid]
       user_log_s << " uid=#{options[:uid]}"
     end
@@ -202,7 +202,7 @@ def self.execute(command, options = NoOptionsSpecified)
       stderr = options[:combine] ? stdout : Puppet::FileSystem.open(null_file, nil, 'w')
 
       exec_args = [command, options, stdin, stdout, stderr]
-      output = String.new
+      output = ''.dup
 
       # We close stdin/stdout/stderr immediately after fork/exec as they're no longer needed by
       # this process. In most cases they could be closed later, but when `stdout` is the "writer"
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util/inifile.rb b/lib/puppet/util/inifile.rb
index 1c2b9363835..ba9e2bab3ac 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util/inifile.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util/inifile.rb
@@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ def [](key)
     # written to file
     def format
       if @destroy
-        text = String.new
+        text = ''.dup
       else
         text = "[#{name}]\n"
         @entries.each do |entry|
@@ -208,7 +208,7 @@ def get_section(name)
     end
 
     def format
-      text = String.new
+      text = ''.dup
 
       @contents.each do |content|
         if content.is_a? Section
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util/package/version/rpm.rb b/lib/puppet/util/package/version/rpm.rb
index ae5ebcfc0b8..ad5c15681b8 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util/package/version/rpm.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util/package/version/rpm.rb
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ def self.parse(ver)
     end
 
     def to_s
-      version_found = String.new
+      version_found = ''.dup
       version_found += "#{@epoch}:"   if @epoch
       version_found += @version
       version_found += "-#{@release}" if @release
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util/provider_features.rb b/lib/puppet/util/provider_features.rb
index 3d406ef5afd..dafae92427e 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util/provider_features.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util/provider_features.rb
@@ -76,7 +76,7 @@ def feature(name, docs, hash = {})
 
   # @return [String] Returns a string with documentation covering all features.
   def featuredocs
-    str = String.new
+    str = ''.dup
     @features ||= {}
     return nil if @features.empty?
     names = @features.keys.sort_by(&:to_s)
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util/selinux.rb b/lib/puppet/util/selinux.rb
index 58f10ca22e2..2b9ade616fa 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util/selinux.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util/selinux.rb
@@ -227,7 +227,7 @@ def get_create_mode(resource_ensure)
 
   # Internal helper function to read and parse /proc/mounts
   def read_mounts
-    mounts = String.new
+    mounts = ''.dup
     begin
       if File.method_defined? "read_nonblock"
         # If possible we use read_nonblock in a loop rather than read to work-
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util/windows/access_control_entry.rb b/lib/puppet/util/windows/access_control_entry.rb
index cba294eb408..acde2d4ec94 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util/windows/access_control_entry.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util/windows/access_control_entry.rb
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ def object_inherit?
   end
 
   def inspect
-    inheritance = String.new
+    inheritance = ''.dup
     inheritance << '(I)' if inherited?
     inheritance << '(OI)' if object_inherit?
     inheritance << '(CI)' if container_inherit?
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util/windows/access_control_list.rb b/lib/puppet/util/windows/access_control_list.rb
index 06bbb8533ce..09685034214 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util/windows/access_control_list.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util/windows/access_control_list.rb
@@ -98,7 +98,7 @@ def reassign!(old_sid, new_sid)
   end
 
   def inspect
-    str = String.new
+    str = ''.dup
     @aces.each do |ace|
       str << "  #{ace.inspect}\n"
     end
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util/windows/adsi.rb b/lib/puppet/util/windows/adsi.rb
index e48832131a7..ac31546fba2 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util/windows/adsi.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util/windows/adsi.rb
@@ -488,7 +488,7 @@ def expired?
     # UNLEN from lmcons.h - https://stackoverflow.com/a/2155176
     MAX_USERNAME_LENGTH = 256
     def self.current_user_name
-      user_name = String.new
+      user_name = ''.dup
       max_length = MAX_USERNAME_LENGTH + 1 # NULL terminated
       FFI::MemoryPointer.new(max_length * 2) do |buffer| # wide string
         FFI::MemoryPointer.new(:dword, 1) do |buffer_size|
@@ -520,7 +520,7 @@ def self.current_user_name
     NameSurname           = 14
 
     def self.current_user_name_with_format(format)
-      user_name = String.new
+      user_name = ''.dup
       max_length = 1024
 
       FFI::MemoryPointer.new(:lpwstr, max_length * 2 + 1) do |buffer|
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util/windows/error.rb b/lib/puppet/util/windows/error.rb
index cbe908a28ef..67b26b9465c 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util/windows/error.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util/windows/error.rb
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ def self.format_error_code(code)
             FORMAT_MESSAGE_ARGUMENT_ARRAY |
             FORMAT_MESSAGE_IGNORE_INSERTS |
             FORMAT_MESSAGE_MAX_WIDTH_MASK
-    error_string = String.new
+    error_string = ''.dup
 
     # this pointer actually points to a :lpwstr (pointer) since we're letting Windows allocate for us
     FFI::MemoryPointer.new(:pointer, 1) do |buffer_ptr|
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util/windows/file.rb b/lib/puppet/util/windows/file.rb
index e26f844982c..c1fcab182d2 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util/windows/file.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util/windows/file.rb
@@ -245,7 +245,7 @@ def readlink(link_name)
   module_function :readlink
 
   def get_long_pathname(path)
-    converted = String.new
+    converted = ''.dup
     FFI::Pointer.from_string_to_wide_string(path) do |path_ptr|
       # includes terminating NULL
       buffer_size = GetLongPathNameW(path_ptr, FFI::Pointer::NULL, 0)
@@ -263,7 +263,7 @@ def get_long_pathname(path)
   module_function :get_long_pathname
 
   def get_short_pathname(path)
-    converted = String.new
+    converted = ''.dup
     FFI::Pointer.from_string_to_wide_string(path) do |path_ptr|
       # includes terminating NULL
       buffer_size = GetShortPathNameW(path_ptr, FFI::Pointer::NULL, 0)
diff --git a/lib/puppet/util/windows/process.rb b/lib/puppet/util/windows/process.rb
index fee52fb3916..efbdae2d029 100644
--- a/lib/puppet/util/windows/process.rb
+++ b/lib/puppet/util/windows/process.rb
@@ -121,7 +121,7 @@ def with_process_token(access, &block)
   module_function :with_process_token
 
   def get_process_image_name_by_pid(pid)
-    image_name = String.new
+    image_name = ''.dup
 
     Puppet::Util::Windows::Security.with_privilege(Puppet::Util::Windows::Security::SE_DEBUG_NAME) do
       open_process(PROCESS_QUERY_INFORMATION, false, pid) do |phandle|