whet one's appetite

Idioms  

1. Arouse one's interest or eagerness, as in That first Schubert piece whetted my appetite; I hope she sings some others. This idiom, first recorded in 1612, transfers making one hungry for food to other kinds of eagerness.

---

Example Sentences

Looking like something died atop two pucks of fried goat cheese, petals of shriveled beet chips do little to whet one’s appetite.

From Washington Post • Sep. 20, 2017

Don’t hide, nor keep your shops closed, as that would only whet one’s appetite for mischief.

From The White Terror and The Red A novel of revolutionary Russia by Cahan, Abraham

You will presently discover, my dear, that youth is only an ingenious prologue to whet one's appetite for a rather dull play.

From Gallantry Dizain des Fetes Galantes by Cabell, James Branch