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whetted

 - 3 dictionary results

whet

  [hwet, wet] verb, whet⋅ted, whet⋅ting, noun
Use whetted in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to sharpen (a knife, tool, etc.) by grinding or friction.
2. to make keen or eager; stimulate: to whet the appetite; to whet the curiosity.
–noun
3. the act of whetting.
4. something that whets; appetizer or drink.
5. Chiefly Southern U.S.
a. a spell of work.
b. a while: to talk a whet.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME whetten (v.), OE hwettan (deriv. of hwæt bold); c. G wetzen, ON hvetja, Goth gahwatjan to incite

Related forms:
whetter, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To whetted
whet   (hwět, wět)   
tr.v.   whet·ted, whet·ting, whets

  1. To sharpen (a knife, for example); hone.

  2. To make more keen; stimulate: The frying bacon whetted my appetite.

n.  

  1. The act of whetting.

  2. Something that whets.

  3. Informal An appetizer.


[Middle English whetten, from Old English hwettan.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

whet 
O.E. hwettan, from P.Gmc. *khwatjanan (cf. O.N. hvetja "to sharpen, encourage," M.L.G., M.Du. wetten, O.H.G. wezzan, Ger. wetzen "to sharpen," Goth. ga-hvatjan "to sharpen, incite"), from an adj. represented by O.E. hwæt "brave, bold," O.S. hwat "sharp," from P.Gmc. *khwataz, from PIE base *qwed- "sharp" (cf. Skt. codati "incites," lit. "sharpens"). Fig. sense was in O.E.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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