… hidden pools and much wider creeks each of which homed its cranes …—I. L. Idriess
Hone in vs. Home in: Usage Guide
Hone in is commonly used to mean "to move toward or focus attention on an objective," as in "hone in on a solution," but the use is often regarded as an error. The original and recommended phrase is home in, with home meaning "to move to or toward an objective by following a signal or landmark," as in "an arrow homing in on a target" and in the name of the creature known as the homing pigeon. Confusion between the similar-sounding hone and home likely arose because hone is a more familiar verb, and its meanings of "to sharpen or smooth with a whetstone" and "to make more acute, intense, or effective" can seem apt in the context of zeroing in on an objective. Still, careful writers will want to use home in, or zero in, if they want to avoid criticism.
Noun
Right now his home is a small apartment.
People are concerned about protecting their homes.
They have a second home on the lake.
There's no place like home.
I must have left my notes at home.
She made a good home for her husband and children.
The islands are home to many species of birds.
Can you find homes for these files in your office? Adverb
She called home to say she would be late for dinner.
He's sending money home from a job overseas.
She is on her way home.
It's great to be back home.
I can't wait to come home.
He used a hammer to drive the nail home. Adjective
She has a happy home life.
Please give us your home phone number.
What is your home address?
The team opens its home season in just two weeks.
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Noun
Bill Walton played hoops and soccer with us at Wallace Park, then rode his bike back to his Northwest Portland home.—
Jason Quick,
New York Times,
12 July 2026 Los Angeles’ only win to date was the forfeit victory over 305 back in Week 1 at Intuit Dome, and Nick Young’s squad is back in its home city again Sunday.—
Juan Carlos Blanco,
Forbes.com,
12 July 2026
Adverb
This relaxed college town, home to Cal Poly, boasts a renowned Thursday night Farmer's Market with diverse food and live music, including famous tri-tip.—
Michael Goldstein,
Forbes.com,
11 July 2026 Part of that adoration comes from a high level of public awareness about wildlife and conservation in Tasmania, home to many endemic species found nowhere else in the world.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
11 July 2026
Adjective
The Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring is a home race for Red Bull Racing, and a quasi-home race for the team's superstar Max Verstappen.—
Matt Reigle Outkick,
FOXNews.com,
27 June 2026 Insurance premiums – Health, life, and any non-home policies.—
Allison Palmer,
Miami Herald,
19 May 2026
Verb
Wainwright’s home out East is one of the 200 or so Leisurama homes that Geller designed for working stiffs on Long Island, which may draw a few architecture buffs, and there is a sauna, hot tub, deck, beach access, and a garage with a separate studio apartment with a full bathroom.—
Adriane Quinlan,
Curbed,
15 June 2026 The best travel this month is active, spontaneous, and close enough to home that logistics don't get in the way of the fun.—
Kirah Tabourn,
Condé Nast Traveler,
28 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for home
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English hom, hoome "dwelling, building, one's native town or land," going back to Old English hām "landed property, estate, dwelling, house, inhabited place, native land," going back to Germanic *haima- "dwelling" (whence also Old Saxon & Old Frisian hēm "home, dwelling," Middle Dutch heem, heim "dwelling," Old High German heima "dwelling, homeland," Old Norse heimr "abode, land, this world," Gothic haims "village, countryside, [in compounds] home"), of uncertain origin
Note:
A widely accepted etymology, if questionable semantically, sees Germanic *haima- as going back to Indo-European *ḱoi-mo, an o-grade derivative, with a suffix *-mo-, of the verbal base *ḱei- "lie, be at rest." Also from *ḱoi-mo- would be an assumed Greek *koímē or *koîmos "bed," the source of the denominal derivative koimáō, koimân "to put to bed, lay to rest" (see cemetery); further associated are Lithuanian šeimà "family, household members (including servants)," Latvian sàime, Russian Church Slavic sěmĭ "person," sěmija, translating Greek andrápoda "prisoners of war sold as slaves," sěminŭ "slave, household member," Russian sem'já "family," Ukrainian sim'já. (Lithuanian kiẽmas "farmstead, village" and káimas "village" are perhaps related, via a form with a centum outcome of ḱ, or as a loanword from Germanic.) According to an alternative hypothesis, Germanic *haima- goes back to Indo-European *tḱoi̯-mo-, a derivative with *-mo- from Indo-European *tḱei̯- "dwell, inhabit" (in a more traditional representation *ḱþei̯-; see amphictyony). Directly comparable would be Sanskrit kṣémaḥ "habitable," kṣémaḥ or -am (noun) "calm, quiet, safety," which within Sanskrit are direct derivatives from kṣéti "(s/he) dwells." The Baltic and Slavic forms cited above would then be attributable to this form.
Adverb
Middle English hom, going back to Old English hām, probably from accusative of hām "dwelling, home entry 1" (with parallel forms in other Germanic languages)
Hone in vs. Home in: Usage Guide 
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