sharpen

Definitions

1. 1.To make sharp. Specifically: (a) To give a keen edge or fine point to; to make sharper; as, to sharpen an ax, or the teeth of a saw. (b) To render more quick or acute in perception; to make more ready or ingenious. The air . . . sharpened his visual ray To objects distant far. Milton. He that wrestles with us strengthens our nerves and sharpens our skill. Burke. (c) To make more eager; as, to sharpen men's desires. Epicurean cooks Sharpen with cloyless sauce his appetite. Shak. (d) To make more pungent and intense; as, to sharpen a pain or disease. (e) To make biting, sarcastic, or severe. "Sharpen each word." E. Smith. (f) To render more shrill or piercing. Inclosures not only preserve sound, but increase and sharpen it. Bacon. (g) To make more tart or acid; to make sour; as, the rays of the sun sharpen vinegar. (h) (Mus. ) To raise, as a sound, by means of a sharp; to apply a sharp to.
2. 2.To grow or become sharp.

Source: Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).

Synonyms

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