hone

[skinem]

hone

Pronunciation: 'hOn
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hAn stone; akin to Old Norse hein whetstone, Latin cot-, cos, Sanskrit sisAti he whets
: WHETSTONE

Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): honed; hon·ing
1 : to sharpen or smooth with a whetstone
2 : to make more acute, intense, or effective : WHET <helped her hone her comic timing -- Patricia Bosworth>
- hon·er noun

Function: intransitive verb
Inflected Form(s): honed; hon·ing
Etymology: Middle French hoigner to grumble
1 dialect : YEARN -- often used with for or after
2 dialect : GRUMBLE, MOAN

Interesting (to me) the different etymologies for the same word.
I started looking at this when I heard a local talking head use the term "hone in", which I always thought was a mistake for "home in".

According to Merriam-Webster, it was. But, I have seen that talking heads aren't sticklers for accuracy.

Main Entry: hone in
Function: intransitive verb
Etymology: alteration of home in
: to move toward or focus attention on an objective <looking back for the ball honing in -- George Plimpton> <a missile honing in on its target -- Bob Greene> <hones in on the plights and victories of the common man -- Lisa Russell>
usage The few commentators who have noticed hone in consider it to be a mistake for home in. It may have arisen from home in by the weakening of the \m\ sound to \n\ or may perhaps simply be due to the influence of hone. Though it seems to have established itself in American English (and mention in a British usage book suggests it is used in British English too), your use of it especially in writing is likely to be called a mistake. Home in or in figurative use zero in does nicely.

[Slava]

A word I've always liked. I never really gave a thought to the "hone in/home in" question, though. I'd say it's more a corruption of "home in," than anything else. But that's my opinion.

Let's continue to hone our language skills and keep thinking about what means what and why.