wear
• verb (past wore; past part. worn) 1 have on one’s body as clothing, decoration, or protection. 2 exhibit or present (a particular facial expression or appearance). 3 damage or destroy or suffer damage or destruction by friction or use. 4 withstand continued use to a specified degree: the fabric wears well wash after wash. 5 (wear off) lose effectiveness or intensity. 6 (wear down) overcome by persistence. 7 (wear out) exhaust. 8 wearing mentally or physically tiring. 9 (wear on) (of time) pass slowly or tediously. • noun 1 the action of wearing or the state of being worn. 2 clothing suitable for a particular purpose or of a particular type. 3 damage sustained from continuous use. 4 the capacity for withstanding such damage. — PHRASES wear thin gradually dwindle or be used up. — DERIVATIVES wearable adjective wearer noun. — ORIGIN Old English.
Perform another search of the Compact Oxford English Dictionary
About this dictionary
The Compact Oxford English Dictionary of Current English contains 145,000 words, phrases, and definitions.
Find out more about Oxford's range of English dictionaries
Sign up for the AskOxford Word of the Day
Search the Little Oxford Dictionary of Quotations
Search the Concise Dictionary of First Names
| 
