Quantcast
Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
  • Dictionary
  • Thesaurus
  • Scrabble
  • Spanish Central
  • Learner's Dictionary

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

Thesaurus

sharpen

verb

Synonyms and Antonyms of sharpen

  1. to make sharp or sharper <you need to sharpen your penknife's blade frequently in order to be able to whittle properly> Synonyms edge, grind, hone, stone, strop, whet Related Words file Near Antonyms buff, burnish, gloss, polish, round, smooth Antonyms blunt, dull



Learn More about sharpen

  1. Dictionary: Definition of sharpen Spanish Central: Translation of sharpen Nglish: Translation of sharpen for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of sharpen for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up sharpen? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

WORD OF THE DAY

woebegone

play

looking or feeling very sad

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. diaspora From the Greek word meaning "to scatter"

  2. big league, bigly Both are real words

  3. stamina The word means "staying power"

  4. temperament The candidates attacked each other's temperaments

  5. braggadocio Trump said 'braggadocious'

SEE ALL

Words at Play

10-words-that-are-older-than-you-might-think-irregardless
Imply/Infer, Amuse/Bemuse, and Other Usage Problems Solved With Limericks

You're welcome

venus
'Venom' and the Goddess of Love

Who knew 'venom' could be so lovely?

migos
Dabbing

New uses of an old word

autumn
Is It 'Autumn' or 'Fall'?

Why does this season have two different names?

Ask the Editors

subjunctive
How to Use the Subjunctive in English

If I were you, I'd watch this

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

dog-eating-apple
September Words of the Day Quiz

Test your knowledge of September Words of the Day.

Take the quiz
alphabet-pasta-spelling-help
Difficult Spelling Words Quiz

Can you spell these 15 tricky spelling words?

Take the quiz
Name That Thing
Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

Take the quiz
SCRABBLE® Sprint
SCRABBLE® Sprint

SCRABBLE® fans, sharpen your skills!

Play the game