parer

A parer has two distinct lives depending on where you are. In standard English, it's a small kitchen tool used for peeling or trimming fruit and vegetables — a paring knife or similar implement. In Irish English, however, a parer is simply a pencil sharpener — the handheld kind you use to put a point on a pencil. The Irish usage is charming and practical: 'pare' meaning to shave or trim carries over naturally. Both meanings share the same cutting-down logic, just applied to very different objects.