| verb | make sharp or sharper “sharpen the knives” |
| verb | make crisp or more crisp and precise “We had to sharpen our arguments” |
| verb | become sharp or sharper “The debate sharpened” |
| verb | put (an image) into focus “Please focus the image; we cannot enjoy the movie” |
| verb | make (images or sounds) sharp or sharper |
| verb | raise the pitch of (musical notes) |
| verb | give a point to “The candles are tapered” |
| verb | make (one's senses) more acute “This drug will sharpen your vision” |
| sharpener | noun | any implement that is used to make something (an edge or a point) sharper |
| focus | noun | maximum clarity or distinctness of an image rendered by an optical system |
| focusing | noun | the act of bringing into focus |
| focalization | noun | the act of bringing into focus |
| focalisation | noun | the act of bringing into focus |
| taper | noun | the property possessed by a shape that narrows toward a point (as a wedge or cone) |
| point | noun | a V shape |