To whette: to file: to make sharpe.

Sharpe edged or pointed: subtile: wittle. In voyce, high, small, shrill. Acutum cultrum habeo. Plant. Sharpe: fine edged kinde. Acutum etiam dicitur, quod in mucronem siue acumen desinit: vt Palus acutus. Plin. With a sharpe point. Angulus acutus. Plin. BellÛ. acutÛ. Hor. Fierce: danngerou. Cupressus acuta. Ouid. With a sharpe toppe. Cuspis acuta. Virg. Ensis acutus. Ouid. Falx acuta. Ouid. Kinde: well whet or grinded. Ferrum acutum reddere dicitur cos. Hor. To make kinde. Hasta acuta. Ouid. With a sharpe head. laculÛ acutum. Virg. Murex acutus. Virg. A sharpe rocke. Pinus acuta. Ouid. Radius acutus. Ouid. Robur acutum. Virg. A peece of timber sharpe pointed. Acuta volucribus rostra. Plin. Rubus acutus. Sen Pricking or full of prickes. Sagitta acuta. Ouid. With a sharpe head. Saxum acutum. Ouid. Scopulus acutus. Virg. Spiculum acutum. Ouid. Spinæ acutæ. Virg. Pricking or full of thornes. Telum acutum. Virg. Vnguis acutus. Hor. Acutum, per meraphoram dictum: vt Acuti oculi. Plaut. Quicke of sight. Acuti cibi. Plin. iun. Eger or sharpe mentes. Morbus acutus. Hor. Celsus. A vehement disease. Naribus acutis rideri. Id est in rugam contractis. Horat. Odor acutus. Acutus vini sapor. Plin. A sharpe smacke. Sol acutus, Horat. Vehement hotte: parching. Acutus, Subtilis. Cic. Subtile: wittie. Acutus & Hebes, contraria, Cic. Acutior atque habilior ad inueniendum. Quint. Qicker. Acutum & perspicax. Cic. Acutus ad excogitandum. Cic. Innentife: quicke of inuÊtion. Aures acutæ. Horat Quicke of hearing. Conclusiones acutæ. Quint. Subtile. Genus dicendi acutum & subtile. Cic. Fine and subtill. Homo ingenio prudentiáque acutissimus. Cic. Very wittie and wise: of a fine witte and very wise. Homo acutus, & natura vsúque callidus. Cic. Subtill. Homo in primis acutus. Cic. Acutum ingenium. Cic. A subtill and quicke witte. Motus animi celeres & acuti. Cic. Motus acutus. Stat. Quícke and sodaine. Opus lenonis acutum. Claud. Craftie. Principia orationum acuta sententijs. Cic. Quicke. Sententiæ docendi acutæ. Cic. Aes acutum. Ouid. Cleare or shrill of sound. Hinnitus acutus. Virg. Shrill: pearting ones eares. Acutus sonus, Plin. High: cleare; shrill. Acutus & excitatus sonus. Idem. Cic. Stridor acutus. Hor. Tinnitus acutus. Ouid. Smal and shrill. Vlulatus acutus, Catul. Vox acuta. Ouid. Small: shrill: high: a treble. Acutum cernere, Id est acutè. Hor. To be quicke of sight.

I. Lit.: ne stridorem quidem serrae audiunt, cum acuitur, Cic. Tusc. 1, 40; so, ferrum, Verg. A. 8, 386; Hor. C. 1, 2, 21: enses, Ov. M. 15, 776: gladium, Vulg. Deut. 32, 41: sagittas, id. Jer. 51, 11.—Poet.: fulmen, Lucr. 6, 278: dentes, Hor. C. 3, 20, 10; cf. Tib. 4, 3, 3.—

II. Trop.

A. First, of the tongue, qs. to whet, i. e. to sharpen, exercise, improve: acuere linguam exercitatione dicendi, Cic. Brut. 97: linguam causis, Hor. Ep. 1, 3, 23; so Vulg. Psa. 139, 4; so in gen.: se, to exercise one's self, to make one's self ready: acueram me ad exagitandam hanc ejus legationem, Cic. Att. 2, 7: mentem, ingenium, prudentiam, etc.; to sharpen: multa, quae acuant mentem, multa quae obtundant, Cic. Tusc. 1, 33; so id. Brut. 33; id. Phil. 2, 17; id. de Or. 1, 20.—

B. Acuere aliquem (with or without ad aliquid), to spur on, incite, stir up, arouse: ad crudelitatem, Cic. Lig. 4; id. Fam. 15, 21: illos sat aetas acuet, Ter. Ad. 5, 3, 49; Cic. Rosc. Am. 33, 110: ita duae res, quae languorem afferunt ceteris, illum acuebant, otium et solitudo, id. Off. 3, 1; Liv. 28, 19: curis acuens mortalia corda, Verg. G. 1, 123: auditisque lupos acuunt balatibus agni, id. ib. 4, 435: quam Juno his acuit verbis, id. A. 7, 330.—

C. Aliquid, to rouse up, kindle, excite (mostly poet.): saevus in armis Aeneas acuit Martem et se suscitat irā, Verg. A. 12, 108: iram, Vulg. Sap. 5, 21: studia, Val. Max. 2, 2, no. 3.—

D. In gramm.: acuere syllabam, to give an acute accent to (opp. gravem ponere), Quint. 1, 5, 22; cf. Prisc. Op. Min. 159 Lind.: accentus acutus ideo inventus est, quod acuat sive elevet syllabam.—Hence, ăcūtus, a, um, P.a., sharpened, made pointed; hence,

A. Lit., sharp, pointed (acer denotes natural sharpness, etc.: acutus, that produced by exertion, skill, etc.: sermo acer, impassioned, passionate; sermo acutus, pointed, acute discourse): vide ut sit acutus culter probe, Plaut. Mil. 5, 4: ferrum, Hor. A. P. 304: cuspis, Verg. A. 5, 208: gladius, Vulg. Psa. 56, 5: carex, Verg. G. 3, 231; elementa, i. e. pointed, jagged atoms (opp. to perplexa, connected), Lucr. 2, 463: nasus, Plaut. Cap. 3, 4, 114: oculi, of a pointed shape, id. Ps. 4, 7, 121: aures, pointed, Hor. C. 2, 19, 4: saxa, id. ib. 3, 27, 61; so Verg. A. 1, 45.—

2. Transf.

a. Of the senses themselves, sharp, keen: oculos acrīs atque cicutos, Cic. Planc. 66: nares, Hor. S. 1, 3, 29; Cels. 2, 6.—

b. Of objects affecting the senses, sharp, acute; of the voice, soprano or treble: inde loci lituus sonitus effudit acutos, Enn. ap. Paul. ex Fest. p. 116 Müll. (Ann. v. 522 ed. Vahl.): hinnitu, Verg. G. 3, 94: voces, id. Cir. 107; Ov. M. 3, 224: stridore, Hor. C. 1, 34, 15: vocem ab acutissimo sono usque ad gravissimum sonum recipiunt, from the highest treble to the lowest base, Cic. de Or. 1, 59, 251; cf. ib. 3, 57, 216; Somn. Scip. 5; Rep. 6, 18.—

c. In gen., of things affecting the body, of either heat or cold from their similar effects, keen, sharp, violent, severe: sol, Hor. Ep. 1, 10, 17: radii solis, Ov. H. 4, 159: gelu, Hor. C. 1, 9, 4; cf. Lucr. 1, 495; Verg. G. 1, 93; so, febris, Cels. 2, 4: morbus, id. 3 (opp. longus), rapid.— Subst. with gen.: acuta belli, violent, severe misfortunes of war, Hor. C. 4, 4, 76 (= graves belli molestias).—

B. Fig.

1. Of intellectual qualities, acute, clear-sighted, intelligent, sagacious (very freq.): Antisthenes homo acutus magis quam eruditus, Cic. Att. 12, 37; so id. de Or. 1, 51; id. N. D. 1, 16; Nep. Dion. 8, 1: homo ingenio prudentiāque acutissimus, Cic. de Or. 1, 39: acutae sententiae, id. Opt. Gen. Or. 2, 5: motus animorum ad excogitandum acuti, id. Or. 1, 113: studia, id. Gen. 50: conclusiones, Quint. 2, 20, 5.—

2. In gramm.: accentus acutus, the acute accent (opp. gravis), Prisc. p. 159, ed. Lindem.—Comp. Plin. 13, 1, 2.—Adv.: ăcūte, sharply, keenly, acutely:. cernere, Lucr. 4, 804; ib. 811: conlecta, Cic. Deiot. 33: excogitat, id. Verr. 4, 147: respondeo, id. Cael. 17: scribo, id. Verr. 3, 20; so, ăcūtum: cernis, Hor. S. 1, 3, 26: resonarent, ib. 8, 41: and, ăcūta: canis ululat, Enn. ap. Fest. p. 9 Müll. (Ann. 346 Vahl.).—Comp., Cic. Inv. 2, 16.—Sup., Cic. Off. 1, 44; id. Verr. 3, 20.