[W/K] :: sharpen

  Sharpen \Sharp"en\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Sarpened; p. pr. & vb.
     n. Sharpening.] [See Sharp, a.]
     To make sharp. Specifically:
     (a) To give a keen edge or fine point to; to make sharper;
         as, to sharpen an ax, or the teeth of a saw.
     (b) To render more quick or acute in perception; to make more
         ready or ingenious.
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               The air . . . sharpened his visual ray
               To objects distant far.              --Milton.
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               He that wrestles with us strengthens our nerves and
               sharpens our skill.                  --Burke.
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     (c) To make more eager; as, to sharpen men's desires.
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               Epicurean cooks
               Sharpen with cloyless sauce his appetite. --Shak.
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     (d) To make more pungent and intense; as, to sharpen a pain
         or disease.
     (e) To make biting, sarcastic, or severe. "Sharpen each
         word." --E. Smith.
     (f) To render more shrill or piercing.
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               Inclosures not only preserve sound, but increase
               and sharpen it.                      --Bacon.
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     (g) To make more tart or acid; to make sour; as, the rays of
         the sun sharpen vinegar.
     (h) (Mus.) To raise, as a sound, by means of a sharp; to
         apply a sharp to.
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  Sharpen \Sharp"en\, v. i.
     To grow or become sharp.
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  sharpen
       v 1: make sharp or sharper; "sharpen the knives" [ant: dull]
       2: make sharp or sharper; "We had to sharpen our arguments"
       3: become sharp or sharper; "The debate sharpened"
       4: put (an image) into focus; "Please focus the image; we
          cannot enjoy the movie" [syn: focus, focalize, focalise]
          [ant: blur]
       5: make (images or sounds) sharp or sharper [ant: soften]
       6: raise the pitch of (musical notes) [ant: flatten]
       7: give a point to; "The candles are tapered" [syn: taper, point]
       8: make (one's senses) more acute; "This drug will sharpen your
          vision" [syn: heighten]

  94 Moby Thesaurus words for "sharpen":
     accelerate, aculeate, acuminate, agent provocateur, aggravate,
     amplify, animate, annoy, augment, barb, beef up, blow up, build up,
     complicate, concentrate, condense, consolidate, cultivate,
     cuspidate, deepen, deteriorate, double, dress, edge, embitter,
     enhance, enlarge, enliven, exacerbate, exaggerate, exasperate,
     excite, exhilarate, file, fillip, galvanize, grind, heat up,
     heighten, hone, hop up, hot up, increase, infuse life into,
     instrument, intensify, invigorate, irritate, jazz up, key up,
     machine, magnify, make acute, make complex, make sensitive,
     make worse, mechanize, mill, motorize, oilstone, pick up, pique,
     point, provoke, quicken, ramify, redouble, refine, reinforce,
     renew, reset, resuscitate, retool, revive, sensibilize, sensitize,
     set, sharp, soup up, sour, spiculate, spur, step up, stimulate,
     stir, strap, strengthen, stroke, strop, taper, tool, triple, whet,
     worsen