honing

verb

present participle of hone
1
as in sharpening
to make sharp or sharper honed the knife's blade to razor-like sharpness honed his crossword-puzzle skills by reading the dictionary as though it were a thrilling novel

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in rubbing
to make smooth by friction honed the edge of the axe until it was amazingly sharp

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of honing Focus on honing your craft and letting your work speak for itself. — Lisa Stardust, Vogue, 1 Oct. 2026 Pre-reading skills, for example, are easier to develop in the language a child has been honing since birth. — Kate Sequeira, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026 However, the strategy is less about reinventing Rag & Bone than honing its house codes for both retail and product. — Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 23 Sep. 2026 Some of us would like to spend less time cursing sun damage, some of us have been honing a gentle routine for managing acne for years, and some of us want to smooth without exacerbating rosacea or eczema. — Elizabeth Siegel, Allure, 17 Sep. 2026 Hernandez has spent the last five years honing his skills as a mixed-martial arts fighter, winning his way through professional matches, all while holding his primary job as a sheriff’s deputy. — Devoun Cetoute, Miami Herald, 17 Sep. 2026 Dassin brings real tension and realism to that section of the film, honing some of the gritty procedural elements that would come to be employed by directors like Michael Mann. — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Sep. 2026 Jessica has been honing her skills on the clay from a young age. — Bailey Bujnosek, InStyle, 31 Aug. 2026 The action star has been honing his tough, stoic hero bit for going on 25 years. — Katie Walsh, Boston Herald, 20 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for honing
  1. sharpening
  2. rubbing
  3. grinding
  4. polishing
  5. filing
  6. sanding
  7. buffing
Verb
  • The Moon moves through practical Virgo, sharpening our eye for details, routines, and the small choices that make life easier.
    — Tarot.com, Chicago Tribune, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Israel’s first election since the attack is sharpening anger over security failures and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while public discussion largely overlooks Palestinian civilians’ lives.
    — Cara Anna, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of sharpening
Verb
  • Separating small equipment, personal accessories, and emergency supplies can also help reduce clutter and prevent belongings from rubbing against one another.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 16 Oct. 2026
  • After two consecutive championships and more than a decade of rubbing the rest of Major League Baseball’s noses in their extravagant wealth, the Los Angeles Dodgers were not going to be missed.
    — Mike Finger, San Antonio Express-News, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of rubbing
Verb
  • After grinding to Akon during their belly dancing date, Cam and Aneha find common ground around growing up in low-income families when their parents lost their jobs.
    — Emma Sharpe, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2026
  • While the left spent all week whining about Sophie Cunningham's hat and firing squad best practices, us PATRIOTS were biding our time, keeping our heads down, and grinding towards another weekend.
    — Zach Dean OutKick, FOXNews.com, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of grinding
Verb
  • There may have been a time when hosting a holiday dinner meant pulling out every platter, polishing the silver, and making sure there were enough wine glasses for a small army.
    — Jessica Safavimehr, Southern Living, 2 Oct. 2026
  • The Duchess of Edinburgh even got hands-on experience shaping and polishing a quartz gemstone.
    — Meredith Kile, PEOPLE, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of polishing
Verb
  • Desulme’s attorney, Ben Kuehne, told the Miami Herald his client was disappointed in the ruling and would be appealing it, in addition to filing a counterclaim against Morgan for the 80-cent shortage.
    — Olivia Lloyd, Miami Herald, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Perry-Bond also rebuked the lawyer who requested the gag order for including in a court filing an email exchange with an attorney for one of the other men.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of filing
Verb
  • Brush everything with an egg wash and top cutouts with sanding sugar.
    — Katlyn Moncada, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Oct. 2026
  • The roughly 7,300-square-foot residence has been adapted for contemporary living without completely sanding away what came before.
    — Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of sanding
Verb
  • If the copper is heavily tarnished, let the toothpaste’s active ingredients work on the patina for ten minutes or so before buffing.
    — Mary Catherine McAnnally Scott, Southern Living, 6 Sep. 2026
  • Classes and skills lean into different styles of play; Astromech droids are entirely support-focused, generating AP (action points) and buffing the party, while the Assault is focused on heavy damage and drawing aggro.
    — Hayes Madsen, Space.com, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of buffing

Browse Nearby Words

honeys
honing
honing in (on)
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Cite this Entry

“Honing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/honing. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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