honing

Verb (1)

hone (third-person singular simple present hones, present participle honing, simple past and past participle honed)

1. (transitive) To sharpen with a hone; to whet.
2. (transitive) To use a hone to produce a precision bore.
3. (transitive) To refine (a skill especially) by learning.
   • He also honed the procedure known as cut and fill - whereby the spoil from railway cuttings was used to build up embankments.2023 August 23, David E Norris, “Joseph Locke: a railway injustice...”, in RAIL, number 990, page 56
4. To make more acute, intense, or effective.

Verb (2)

hone (third-person singular simple present hones, present participle honing, simple past and past participle honed)

1. (Southern US, UK, US, dialectal, intransitive) To grumble.
   • Such tunges ſhuld be torne out by the harde rootes,c. 1515–1516, published 1568, John Skelton, Againſt venemous tongues enpoyſoned with ſclaunder and falſe detractions &c.
2. (Southern US, UK, US, dialectal) To pine, lament, or long.
   • He lies pitying himself, honing and moaning to himself1823, Elia [pseudonym; Charles Lamb], Elia. Essays which have Appeared under that Signature in The London Magazine, London: […] [Thomas Davison] for Taylor and Hessey, […], →OCLC

See all 11 meanings of hone