worn
1 Americanadjective
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diminished in value or usefulness through wear, use, handling, etc..
The car's front tires were very worn, with little tread left.
-
showing a considerable level of use or wear.
He read his speech from two worn pieces of notebook paper that had obviously been folded and unfolded many times.
-
wearied; exhausted.
She looked worn but joyful as she held her newborn daughter.
verb
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a combining form with the meaning “showing a specified level of use, deterioration, or consumption”.
Before you toss that little-worn top, consider if it could be given a second life.
-
a combining form with the meaning “showing wear, deterioration, or exhaustion from a specified cause”.
The old bridges fit the landscape, maybe because they are as windworn and aged as the land around them.
The knights were weary and battleworn when they returned to the castle.
verb
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012adjective
-
affected, esp adversely, by long use or action
a worn suit
-
haggard; drawn
-
exhausted; spent
Other Word Forms
- self-worn adjective
- unworn adjective
- wornness noun
Etymology
Origin of worn
First recorded in 1500–10, for the adjective
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“It was, ‘Oh, my God, you’re going to give me something that somebody’s worn before?’
"We are worn out, we have been set back decades, but we are not even on the Pope's mind," he said, echoing the views of some others in southern Lebanon.
From BBC
I must have been looking worn out.
From Los Angeles Times
He also recalled an encounter with a barman who was gay, who didn't know what World Aids Day was or recognise a pin worn by Mr Lewis which read "Can't Pass It On" - a reference to the fact you can't transmit HIV if you're having effective treatment.
From BBC
When we do notice, often long after they’re worn out, we tell ourselves we’ll replace them tomorrow.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
