# sharpen vs sharper

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### sharpen
*verb · IPA /ˈʃɑɹpən/ · frequency rank #23,990*
To make sharp.

### sharper
*adjective · IPA /ˈʃɑɹpɚ/ · frequency rank #21,062*
comparative form of sharp: more sharp

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sharpen-vs-sharper