Crossword Genius

Frank almost gets sharp (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

hones

'gets sharp' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)

'frank almost' is the wordplay.
'frank' becomes 'honest' (similar in meaning).
'almost' means to remove the last letter (most of the word but not all of it).
'honest' with its final letter taken off is 'HONES'.

(Other definitions for hones that I've seen before include "Sharpens as on whetstone" , "Sharpens, like knife on stone" , "Perfects, sharpens" , "Sharpens on strap, say razor" , "gets sharp" .)

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