I. ˈhōn noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hān stone; akin to Old Norse hein whetstone, Latin cos, Greek kōnos cone, Sanskrit sisāti he sharpens, saṇa whetstone
1.
a. : a fine-grit stone used for sharpening a cutting implement (as a razor) — compare oilstone , whetstone
b. : an artificial stone covered with an abrading substance and used for sharpening
2. : a tool for enlarging holes to precise tolerances and controlling finishes especially of internal cylindrical surfaces by means of a mechanically rotated and expanded abrasive
3. : a drag for dressing and smoothing a road surface (as gravel)
II. transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
1. : to sharpen with or as if with a hone : whet
learned to hone and strop his razor correctly — G.S.Perry
honed his antlers sharp as knives — D.C.Peattie
the Yankee character was honed sharp right here — Bernard DeVoto
2. : to enlarge or smooth with a hone
cylinder bodies are bored and then honed to a mirror finish — Mechanical Engineering
the walls of the vestibule are lined with honed pink stone from Mankato — American Guide Series: Minnesota
III. intransitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle French hoigner to murmur, grumble, perhaps alteration (influenced by groigner to grumble, from Latin grunnire to grunt) of honir, honnir to dishonor, of Germanic origin; akin to Old English hīenan, hȳnan to abase, Old High German hōnen to revile, Gothic haunjan to abase; causative-denominative from a Germanic adjective represented by Old English hēan lowly, abject, Gothic hauns humble; akin to Old High German hōna scorn, Old Norse hāth act of jeering, Greek kauros bad, Latvian kauns disgrace — more at grunt
1. now dialect : to grumble and moan
2. now dialect : long , yearn — usually used with for or after
'tis vain, 'tis vain, my dear young man, to hone for Barbara Allen — Barbara Allen