wear out
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See also: wearout
English[edit]
Verb[edit]
wear out (third-person singular simple present wears out, present participle wearing out, simple past wore out, past participle worn out)
- To cause (something) to become damaged, useless, or ineffective through continued use, especially hard, heavy, or careless use.
- You're going to wear out that game if you keep playing so rough with it.
- He wears a pair of tennis shoes out every summer.
- [1877], Anna Sewell, “Jerry Barker”, in Black Beauty: […], London: Jarrold and Sons, […], →OCLC, part III, page 175:
- "You never take the trouble to see if he will go without it; your whip is always going as if you had the St. Vitus' dance in your arm; and if it does not wear you out, it wears your horse out; you know you are always changing your horses, and why? because you never give them any peace or encouragement."
- (intransitive) To deteriorate or become unusable or ineffective due to continued use, exposure, or strain.
- The old tractor finally wore out.
- My shoes wear out quickly now that I walk to work.
- 1942 September and October, “Notes and News: The Stanmore Branch”, in Railway Magazine, page 311:
- Mr. Simpson adds that the station at Stanmore appears practically unchanged from the time of its opening, even to the L.N.W.R. rubber doormat, which "shows no signs of wearing out."
- To exhaust; to cause or contribute to another's exhaustion, fatigue, or weariness, as by continued strain or exertion.
- You kids are wearing me out!
- Trying to keep up with politics wears me out.
- Our physical advantage allowed us to wear the other team out and win.
- (intransitive) To become exhausted, tired, fatigued, or weary, as by continued strain or exertion.
- I'm wearing out, guys. Time to go to sleep.
- 2021 December 29, Stephen Roberts, “Stories and facts behind railway plaques: Lancaster (1860)”, in RAIL, number 947, page 58:
- They built our railways, but they wore themselves out in the process.
- Of apparel, to display in public.
- Those sweatpants are great for loafing around the house, but they're not meant to be worn out.
- Of a shirt, to not tuck into the pants; to wear in a casual manner.
- A dress shirt should be tucked in, but a t-shirt can be worn out.
- (chiefly Southern US) To punish by spanking.
Synonyms[edit]
- outwear
- See also Thesaurus:fatigue
Derived terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
to cause to become damaged, useless, or ineffective through continued use
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to deteriorate or become unusable or ineffective due to continued use, exposure, or strain
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to exhaust; to cause or contribute to another's exhaustion, fatigue, or weariness
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to become exhausted, tired, fatigued, or weary
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
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See also[edit]
Further reading[edit]
- “wear”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- “wear out”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
wear on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
