Pencil Sharpener
/ˈpɛn.səl ˌʃɑːr.pən.ər/noun
A tool used to remove the outer wood of a pencil and shape its graphite core to a point.
Did you know?Pencil comes from Latin penicillus, meaning “little brush,” because early pencils resembled small artists’ brushes rather than modern wooden writing tools.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Latin
Latin
penicillus
“A little brush or fine paintbrush; literally a diminutive form associated with a tail or tuft.”
Late Latin
Latin
pencillus
“A small brush or writing instrument.”
14th Century
Old French
pincel
“A small brush or painter’s tool.”
14th Century
Middle English
pensel
“A small brush, especially one used by artists.”
16th Century
English
pencil
“A small brush, then a writing instrument made with a graphite-like marking core.”
19th Century
English
sharpener
“An instrument or device that makes something sharp, formed from sharp plus the agent-forming suffix -er.”
Modern English
English
pencil sharpener
“A device for sharpening the point of a pencil.”
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