2. That which whets or sharpens; esp., an appetizer. "Sips, drams, and
whets." Spectator.
Whet slate (Min.), a variety of slate used for sharpening cutting
instruments; novaculite; — called also whetstone slate, and oilstone.
Wheth"er (?), pron. [OE. whether, AS. hwæ&?;er; akin to OS. hwe&?;ar,
OFries. hweder, OHG. hwedar, wedar, G. weder, conj., neither, Icel.
hvrr whether, Goth. hwa&?;ar, Lith. katras, L. uter, Gr. &?;, &?;, Skr.
katara, from the interrogatively pronoun, in AS. hw who. &?;&?;&?;&?;.
See Who, and cf. Either, Neither, Or, conj.] Which (of two); which one
(of two); — used interrogatively and relatively. [Archaic]
Now choose yourself whether that you liketh.
Chaucer.
One day in doubt I cast for to compare Whether in beauties' glory did
exceed.
Spenser.
Whether of them twain did the will of his father?
Matt. xxi. 31.
Wheth"er, conj. In case; if; — used to introduce the first or two or
more alternative clauses, the other or others being connected by or, or
by or whether. When the second of two alternatives is the simple
negative of the first it is sometimes only indicated by the particle
not or no after the correlative, and sometimes it is omitted entirely
as being distinctly implied in the whether of the first.
And now who knows But you, Lorenzo, whether I am yours?
Shak.
You have said; but whether wisely or no, let the forest judge.
Shak.
For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die
unto the Lord; whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's.
Rom. xiv. 8.
But whether thus these things, or whether not; Whether the sun,
predominant in heaven, Rise on the earth, or earth rise on the sun, . .
. Solicit not thy thoughts with matters hid.
Milton.
Whether or no, in either case; in any case; as, I will go whether or
no. — Whether that, whether. Shak.
Wheth"er*ing, n. The retention of the afterbirth in cows. Gardner.
Whet"ile (?), n. [Cf. Whitile.] (Zoöl.) The green woodpecker, or
yaffle. See Yaffle. [Prov. Eng.]
Whet"stone` (?), n. [AS. hwetstn.] A piece of stone, natural or
artificial, used for whetting, or sharpening, edge tools.
The dullness of the fools is the whetstone of the wits.
Shak.
Diligence is to the understanding as the whetstone to the razor.
South.
Some whetstones are used dry, others are moistened with water, or
lubricated with oil.
To give the whetstone, to give a premium for extravagance in falsehood.
[Obs.]
Whet"ter (?), n.