Honing is a final finishing process that applies a slight, uniform pressure to a light abrasive that wipes over the entire targeted surface of the workpiece to improve the geometric form of the surface and/or its texture. Typical applications are the finishing of cylinders for internal combustion engines, air bearing spindles and gears.
In everyday use, a honing steel is used to hone knives, especially kitchen knives, and is a fine process, there contrasted with more abrasive sharpening. Other similar processes are lapping and superfinishing.
