To wear away

To wear away
Wear Wear, v. t. [imp. {Wore} (w[=o]r); p. p. {Worn} (w[=o]rn); p. pr. & vb. n. {Wearing}. Before the 15th century wear was a weak verb, the imp. & p. p. being {Weared}.] [OE. weren, werien, AS. werian to carry, to wear, as arms or clothes; akin to OHG. werien, weren, to clothe, Goth. wasjan, L. vestis clothing, vestire to clothe, Gr. "enny`nai, Skr. vas. Cf. {Vest}.] [1913 Webster] 1. To carry or bear upon the person; to bear upon one's self, as an article of clothing, decoration, warfare, bondage, etc.; to have appendant to one's body; to have on; as, to wear a coat; to wear a shackle. [1913 Webster]

What compass will you wear your farthingale? --Shak. [1913 Webster]

On her white breast a sparkling cross she wore, Which Jews might kiss, and infidels adore. --Pope. [1913 Webster]

2. To have or exhibit an appearance of, as an aspect or manner; to bear; as, she wears a smile on her countenance. ``He wears the rose of youth upon him.'' --Shak. [1913 Webster]

His innocent gestures wear A meaning half divine. --Keble. [1913 Webster]

3. To use up by carrying or having upon one's self; hence, to consume by use; to waste; to use up; as, to wear clothes rapidly. [1913 Webster]

4. To impair, waste, or diminish, by continual attrition, scraping, percussion, on the like; to consume gradually; to cause to lower or disappear; to spend. [1913 Webster]

That wicked wight his days doth wear. --Spenser. [1913 Webster]

The waters wear the stones. --Job xiv. 19. [1913 Webster]

5. To cause or make by friction or wasting; as, to wear a channel; to wear a hole. [1913 Webster]

6. To form or shape by, or as by, attrition. [1913 Webster]

Trials wear us into a liking of what, possibly, in the first essay, displeased us. --Locke. [1913 Webster]

{To wear away}, to consume; to impair, diminish, or destroy, by gradual attrition or decay.

{To wear off}, to diminish or remove by attrition or slow decay; as, to wear off the nap of cloth.

{To wear on} or {To wear upon}, to wear. [Obs.] ``[I] weared upon my gay scarlet gites [gowns.]'' --Chaucer.

{To wear out}. (a) To consume, or render useless, by attrition or decay; as, to wear out a coat or a book. (b) To consume tediously. ``To wear out miserable days.'' --Milton. (c) To harass; to tire. ``[He] shall wear out the saints of the Most High.'' --Dan vii. 25. (d) To waste the strength of; as, an old man worn out in military service.

{To wear the breeches}. See under {Breeches}. [Colloq.] [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • wear\ away — • wear down • wear off • wear away v 1. To remove or disappear little by little through use, time, or the action of weather. Time and weather have worn off the name on the gravestone. The eraser has worn off my pencil. The grass has worn away… …   Словарь американских идиом

  • wear away — • wear off • wear away remove or disappear little by little by use, time or weather The name on the front of my passport has worn off from using it too much …   Idioms and examples

  • wear away — index consume, decay, degenerate, diminish, erode, expire, languish, lessen, spend …   Law dictionary

  • wear away — verb 1. cut away in small pieces • Syn: ↑whittle away, ↑whittle down • Hypernyms: ↑damage • Verb Frames: Somebody s something Something s something …   Useful english dictionary

  • wear away — phrasal verb [intransitive/transitive] Word forms wear away : present tense I/you/we/they wear away he/she/it wears away present participle wearing away past tense wore away past participle worn away to disappear, or to make something disappear,… …   English dictionary

  • wear away — Synonyms and related words: abate, ablate, abrade, abrase, absorb, abstract, assimilate, atomize, bark, bate, be all over, be consumed, be eaten away, be gone, be no more, become extinct, become void, bite, bleed white, blow over, break, break up …   Moby Thesaurus

  • wear away — PHR V ERG If you wear something away or if it wears away, it becomes thin and eventually disappears because it is used a lot or rubbed a lot. [V P n (not pron)] It had a saddle with springs sticking out, which wore away the seat of my pants... [V …   English dictionary

  • wear away — (Roget s Thesaurus II) I verb To consume gradually, as by chemical reaction or friction: bite, corrode, eat, erode, gnaw, wear. See ATTACK. II verb See wear …   English dictionary for students

  • wear away — See: WEAR DOWN …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • wear away — See: WEAR DOWN …   Dictionary of American idioms

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