as in sharpened
having an edge thin enough to cut or pierce something
I'll need a well-whetted axe to split the wood
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Recent Examples of whetted
Literary Hub, 2 Jan. 2026
Exposure to the outside world, through her father's work, must have whetted MacLeod's appetite for travel, Crichton says.
—Lauren Frayer, NPR, 14 Sep. 2025
Verb
The sheer audacity of the recent Louvre heist has whetted us readers’ appetites for heist stories—space heists, all the better!
—Literary Hub, 2 Jan. 2026
Exposure to the outside world, through her father's work, must have whetted MacLeod's appetite for travel, Crichton says.
—Lauren Frayer, NPR, 14 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whetted
Verb
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That history has sharpened the board’s focus this time on ensuring a smoother transition and continuity from Iger’s tenure in the top.—
Allie Canal,
NBC news,
3 Feb. 2026
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As excitement has built and focus has sharpened in preparation for the Winter Olympics, biathlete and Minnesota native Luci Anderson has been jarred at times by thoughts of home.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
3 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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At the same time, China has been trading sharp diplomatic warnings with Japan after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested that a Chinese attack on Taiwan would compel a military response from Tokyo, further underscoring how the issue is drawing in multiple regional and global powers.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
1 Feb. 2026
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The blue sky, the contrast of snow and dark winter trees and the sharp air just puts me right.—
Moira McCarthy,
Boston Herald,
1 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Whetted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whetted. Accessed 6 Feb. 2026.
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