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fatigue

[fuh-teeg]
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noun
  1. weariness from bodily or mental exertion.
  2. a cause of weariness; slow ordeal; exertion: the fatigue of driving for many hours.
  3. Physiology. temporary diminution of the irritability or functioning of organs, tissues, or cells after excessive exertion or stimulation.
  4. Civil Engineering. the weakening or breakdown of material subjected to stress, especially a repeated series of stresses.
  5. Also called fatigue duty. Military.
    1. labor of a generally nonmilitary kind done by soldiers, such as cleaning up an area, digging drainage ditches, or raking leaves.
    2. the state of being engaged in such labor: on fatigue.
  6. fatigues, Military. fatigue clothes.
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adjective
  1. of or relating to fatigues or any clothing made to resemble them: The guerrilla band wore fatigue pants and field jackets. She brought fatigue shorts to wear on the hike.
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verb (used with object), fa·tigued, fa·ti·guing.
  1. to weary with bodily or mental exertion; exhaust the strength of: Endless chatter fatigues me.
  2. Civil Engineering. to subject (a material) to fatigue.
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verb (used without object), fa·tigued, fa·ti·guing.
  1. to become fatigued.
  2. Civil Engineering. (of a material) to undergo fatigue.
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Origin of fatigue

1685–95; < French fatigue (noun), fatiguer (v.) < Latin fatīgāre to tire
Related formsfa·tigue·less, adjectivefa·ti·guing·ly, adverban·ti·fa·tigue, adjectiveun·fa·ti·guing, adjective

Synonyms

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8. tire, debilitate, enervate.

fatigue clothes

plural noun
  1. a soldier's uniform for fatigue duty.
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Origin of fatigue clothes

First recorded in 1830–40
Also called fatigues.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for fatigue

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • The Czar might retreat until his pursuers perished of fatigue and hunger.

  • One of its most deadly weapons is fatigue, or the simulation of fatigue.

  • Fatigue made the ladies glad to be shown to the rooms prepared for them.

    Weighed and Wanting

    George MacDonald

  • It was as if she found in sheer activity and fatigue a remedy for her uneasiness.

    K

    Mary Roberts Rinehart

  • Renmark stepped into the light, and she saw his face was haggard with fatigue and anxiety.

British Dictionary definitions for fatigue

fatigue

noun
  1. physical or mental exhaustion due to exertion
  2. a tiring activity or effort
  3. physiol the temporary inability of an organ or part to respond to a stimulus because of overactivity
  4. the progressive cracking of a material subjected to alternating stresses, esp vibrations
  5. the temporary inability to respond to a situation or perform a function, because of overexposure or overactivitycompassion fatigue
    1. any of the mainly domestic duties performed by military personnel, esp as a punishment
    2. (as modifier)fatigue duties
  7. (plural) special clothing worn by military personnel to carry out such duties
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verb -tigues, -tiguing or -tigued
  1. to make or become weary or exhausted
  2. to crack or break (a material or part) by inducing fluctuating stresses in it, or (of a metal or part) to become weakened or fail as a result of fluctuating stresses
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Derived Formsfatigable (ˈfætɪɡəbəl), adjectivefatigueless, adjective

Word Origin

C17: from French, from fatiguer to tire, from Latin fatīgāre
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for fatigue

n.

1660s, "that which causes weariness," from French fatigue "weariness," from fatiguer "to tire," from Latin fatigare, originally "to cause to break down," later, "to weary, fatigue, tire out," from pre-Latin adj. *fati-agos "driving to the point of breakdown," from Old Latin *fatis (of unknown origin, related to adv. affatim "sufficiently" and to fatisci "crack, split") + root of agere "to drive" (see act (n.)). Meaning "weariness from exertion" is from 1719.

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v.

1690s, from French fatiguer (15c.), from fatigue (see fatigue (n.). Earlier in same sense was fatigate (1530s). Related: Fatigued; fatiguing.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
fatigue in Medicine

fatigue

(fə-tēg′)
n.
  1. Physical or mental weariness resulting from exertion.
  2. A sensation of boredom and lassitude due to absence of stimulation, to monotony, or to lack of interest in one's surroundings.
  3. The decreased capacity or complete inability of an organism, organ, or part to function normally because of excessive stimulation or prolonged exertion.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.