whet

American  

[hwet, wet] / ʰwɛt, wɛt /

verb (used with object)

whetted, whetting

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.

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noun

1. the act of whetting.

2. something that whets; appetizer or drink.

3. Chiefly Southern U.S.

   1. a spell of work.

   2. a while.

      to talk a whet.

whet British  

/ wɛt /

verb

1. to sharpen, as by grinding or friction

2. to increase or enhance (the appetite, desire, etc); stimulate

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noun

1. the act of whetting

2. a person or thing that whets

Other Word Forms

• unwhetted adjective
• whetter noun

Etymology

Origin of whet

before 900; Middle English whetten (v.), Old English hwettan (derivative of hwæt bold); cognate with German wetzen, Old Norse hvetja, Gothic gahwatjan to incite

Example Sentences

While just a sampling, the show whets one’s appetite.

From The Wall Street Journal

That ritual whetted his curiosity about his nation’s native spirit.

From The Wall Street Journal

The swathes of fertile farmland in Sudan, Africa's third-largest country and a potential agricultural breadbasket, have whetted the appetite of the desert Gulf countries across the Red Sea.

From Barron's

But the 37-year-old was ringside to watch Wardley's win against friend and training partner Parker - and that might have whet his appetite.

From BBC

Did they whet your whistle for the book?

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• incite
• kindle
• pique
• stimulate