# hone
## English
### Pronunciation

* (General American) IPA: /hoʊn/
* (Received Pronunciation) IPA: /həʊn/
* Audio (US):(file)
* Rhymes: -əʊn

### Etymology 1

From Middle English hon (“whetstone”), from Old English hān, from Proto-Germanic *hainō (compare Dutch heen, Norwegian hein), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱeh₃i- (“to sharpen”) (compare Ancient Greek κῶνος (kônos, “cone”), Persian سان (sân, “whetstone”)).

#### Noun

hone (plural hones)
* A sharpening stone composed of extra-fine grit used for removing the burr or curl from the blade of a razor or some other edge tool.
* A machine tool used in the manufacture of precision bores.

##### Derived terms

* hone slate
* hone stone
* Turkey hone

##### Translations
#### Verb

hone (third-person singular simple present hones, present participle honing, simple past and past participle honed)
* (transitive) To sharpen with a hone; to whet.
* (transitive) To use a hone to produce a precision bore.
* (transitive) To refine or master (a skill).
** 2023 August 23, David E Norris, “Joseph Locke: a railway injustice...”, in RAIL, number 990, page 56:He also honed the procedure known as cut and fill - whereby the spoil from railway cuttings was used to build up embankments.
** 2011, “Revenge”, CaptainSparklez (lyrics), Doc Exx (music), performed by TryHardNinja, parody of Usher's DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love:Huh? Training in your room under the torchlight / Hone that form to get you ready for the big fight
* To make more acute, intense, or effective.

##### Derived terms

* hone in (on) (proscribed)

##### Translations
#### See also

* grit
* sandpaper
* steel
* strop
* swarf

### Etymology 2

Cognate with Icelandic hnúður. Distantly related to knot.

#### Noun

hone (plural hones)
* A kind of swelling in the cheek.

##### Derived terms

* honewort

### Etymology 3

French hogner (“to grumble”), which could be a cross of honnir (“to disgrace, shame”) and grogner (“to grunt”).

#### Verb

hone (third-person singular simple present hones, present participle honing, simple past and past participle honed)
* (UK, US, Southern US, dialect, intransitive) To grumble.
** c. 1515–1516, published 1568, John Skelton, Againſt venemous tongues enpoyſoned with ſclaunder and falſe detractions &c.:
    Such tunges ſhuld be torne out by the harde rootes, Hoyning like hogges that groynis and wrotes.
* (UK, US, Southern US, dialect) To pine, lament, or long.
** 1823, Elia [pseudonym; Charles Lamb], Elia. Essays which have Appeared under that Signature in The London Magazine, London: […] [Thomas Davison] for Taylor and Hessey, […], →OCLC:He lies pitying himself, honing and moaning to himself

### Etymology 4
#### Interjection

hone
* Synonym of alas Used to express sorrow, or grief
** 1836, Joanna Baillie, Witchcraft, Act 4, page 141
    Oh, hone! oh, hone! miserable wretch that I am! Do ye mak confession for me, Sir, and I'll say 't after you, as weel as I dow. Oh, hone! oh, hone!

## Cimbrian
### Alternative forms

* huunig (Sette Comuni)

### Etymology

From Middle High German honec, honic, from Old High German honag, honeg, from Proto-West Germanic *hunag, from Proto-Germanic *hunagą. Cognate with German Honig, English honey.

### Noun

hone m
* (Luserna) honey
    süaz azpi dar hone ― as sweet as honey

### References

* Patuzzi, Umberto, ed., (2013) Luserna / Lusérn: Le nostre parole / Ünsarne börtar / Unsere Wörter [Our Words], Luserna, Italy: Comitato unitario delle isole linguistiche storiche germaniche in Italia / Einheitskomitee der historischen deutschen Sprachinseln in Italien

## Japanese
### Romanization

hone
* Rōmaji transcription of ほね

## Middle English
### Etymology 1

From Old English hān, from Proto-West Germanic *hainu, from Proto-Germanic *hainō (“whetstone”). The final vowel is generalised from the Old English inflected forms.

#### Alternative forms

* hayn, hoone

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈhɔːn(ə)/

#### Noun

hone
* hone (whetstone)

##### Descendants

* English: hone
** → Scots: hone, whoon

#### References

* “hōne, n.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

### Etymology 2
#### Noun

hone
* Alternative form of hon

## Norwegian Bokmål
### Verb

hone (imperative hon, present tense honer, preterite and past participle hona or honet)
* (transitive) polish, hone

## Yola
### Noun

hone
* Alternative form of hoane
** 1867, OBSERVATIONS BY THE EDITOR:F. brone, eelone, hone, lone, sthone, sthrone.E. brand, island, hand, land, stand, strand.
** 1867, “DR. RUSSELL ON THE INHABITANTS AND DIALECT OF THE BARONY OF FORTH”, in APPENDIX, page 131:Wathere proceeds to tell that the game was ”was jist ing our hone“Walter proceeds to tell that the game was ”was just in our hand”

### References

* Jacob Poole (d. 1827) (before 1828) William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, published 1867, page 14