hone
verb /həʊn/
/həʊn/
Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they hone | /həʊn/ /həʊn/ |
| he / she / it hones | /həʊnz/ /həʊnz/ |
| past simple honed | /həʊnd/ /həʊnd/ |
| past participle honed | /həʊnd/ /həʊnd/ |
| -ing form honing | /ˈhəʊnɪŋ/ /ˈhəʊnɪŋ/ |
- to develop and improve something, especially a skill, over a period of time
- hone something She honed her debating skills at college.
- It was a finely honed piece of writing.
- hone something to something His body was honed to perfection.
- hone something (to something) to make a knife or other tool sharp or sharper synonym sharpen
- The knife had been honed to razor sharpness.
- The hook should be honed to a needle-sharp point.
Word OriginMiddle English: from Old English hān ‘stone’, of Germanic origin; related to Old Norse hein.