whetting

verb

present participle of whet
as in sharpening
to make sharp or sharper whetted the knife with the grindstone

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 whetting The set-closer peaked with Campbell and Tench trading solos in an extended jam, only further whetting the crowd’s collective appetite for more and closing the case for a tour. — Adam Gold, Rolling Stone, 18 Sep. 2026 The announcement lands at the close of Marché du Film, where Japan was this year’s country of honor, and caps a busy session for Frontières Platform, which in recent years has been a key player in whetting the growing appetite for genre film at both the Cannes’ festival and market. — Jennie Punter, Variety, 22 May 2026 After six weeks whetting blades in the factory on a grinding belt, Brigitte received a silver motorbike. — Simon Akam, Vanity Fair, 2 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whetting
  1. sharpening
  2. grinding
Verb
  • Wear Lipstick in Russian Red, sharpening around the mouth with Jones Road The Lip Pencil in Tawny Nude.
    — Fawnia Soo Hoo, Allure, 5 Oct. 2026
  • That is not Brutus sharpening his dagger on the Senate steps – that is what good governance looks like, and by any rule of good governance, Goldman Sachs is lucky to have David Solomon continuing at the helm.
    — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of sharpening
Verb
  • Hitler wanted more dead, but his early lightning victories—Poland beaten in weeks, France in forty days—had turned into a grinding nightmare for the Nazis.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2026
  • The Raunchiest Miley Cyrus shocked viewers by stripping down to a nude bikini top and briefs and grinding, twerking and thrusting on fellow performer Robin Thicke at the 2013 show in one of the raciest performances in MTV history.
    — Kate Hogan, PEOPLE, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of grinding

Browse Nearby Words

whetted
whetting
whey-faced
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Cite this Entry

“Whetting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whetting. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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