hone in

verb

honed in; honing in; hones in

intransitive verb

: to move toward or focus attention on an objective

looking back for the ball honing in

—George Plimpton

a missile honing in on its target

—Bob Greene

hones in on the plights and victories of the common man

—Lisa Russell

Hone in vs. Home in: Usage Guide

Most usage commentators consider hone in to be a mistake for home in. The use may have arisen from home in by the weakening of the \m\ sound to \n\ or it may have developed simply because of the influence of hone, with perhaps an underlying sense that "honing" figuratively involves a narrowing or sharpening of focus. Whatever the explanation of its origins, it has established itself in American English and has begun to make a few inroads into British English as well. Even so, your use of it especially in writing is likely to be called a mistake. Home in or in figurative use zero in is an easy alternative.

Examples of hone in in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Browns general manager Andrew Berry likened him to Shohei Ohtani, the Los Angeles Dodgers’ hitting-and-pitching superstar, prompting speculation that Cleveland was honing in on Hunter. —Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 25 Apr. 2025

The survey focused specifically on time taken off that excludes sick leave, doctor's appointments—instead honing in on time explicitly set aside for personal well-being and leisure. —Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Apr. 2025

Other hot zones to hone in on: your junk drawer, your coffee-mug collection, and toy bins in your kid’s room. —Petra Guglielmetti, Glamour, 2 Apr. 2025

Its maiden and hero product, Rested, hones in on sleep as the fundamental step to optimizing cognitive and immune function. —Bianca Salonga, Forbes.com, 1 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

alteration of home in

First Known Use

1965, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for hone in

• santonin
• calcitonin
• digitonin
• melatonin
• serotonin
• kronen
• onan
• phonon
• ronin