Hone

Podcast 1 · Introduction

Hone

A documentary-style narration: origin, meaning, and feel.

Part of speech

verb and noun

Pronunciation

hohn  /həʊn/

Definition

As a verb: to sharpen a knife, blade, or other cutting tool using a whetstone or honing steel; (figuratively) to refine, improve, or perfect a skill, technique, or quality through practice and effort. As a noun: a whetstone or other sharpening tool used to sharpen blades.

Plain meaning

To hone means to sharpen a blade to a fine edge, or — figuratively — to refine and perfect something through practice. You hone a knife on a whetstone; you hone your writing skills through years of practice. A hone is the sharpening stone itself.

Register

Neutral to slightly formal. The physical sense of hone is specialist (blades, sharpening). The figurative sense is widely used in professional, journalistic, and self-improvement contexts: honing your skills, honing your technique, honing your craft. The phrase hone in (if used instead of home in) is informal and disputed.