From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Sharpen \Sharp"en\, verb (used with an object) [imp. & p. p. {Sarpened}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Sharpening}.] [See {Sharp}, adjective] 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.
The air . . . sharpened his visual ray To objects distant far. --Milton.
He that wrestles with us strengthens our nerves and sharpens our skill. --Burke. (c) To make more eager; as, to sharpen men's desires.
Epicurean cooks Sharpen with cloyless sauce his appetite. --Shak. (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.
Inclosures not only preserve sound, but increase and sharpen it. --Bacon. (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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