fatigue

[fuh-teeg]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR fatigue ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

weariness from bodily or mental exertion.

a cause of weariness; slow ordeal; exertion: the fatigue of driving for many hours.

Physiology. temporary diminution of the irritability or functioning of organs, tissues, or cells after excessive exertion or stimulation.

Civil Engineering. the weakening or breakdown of material subjected to stress, especially a repeated series of stresses.

Also called fatigue duty. Military.

labor of a generally nonmilitary kind done by soldiers, such as cleaning up an area, digging drainage ditches, or raking leaves.
the state of being engaged in such labor: on fatigue.

fatigues, Military. fatigue clothes.

adjective

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.

verb (used with object), fa·tigued, fa·ti·guing.

to weary with bodily or mental exertion; exhaust the strength of: Endless chatter fatigues me.

Civil Engineering. to subject (a material) to fatigue.

verb (used without object), fa·tigued, fa·ti·guing.

to become fatigued.

Civil Engineering. (of a material) to undergo fatigue.

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 for fatigue

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR fatigue ON THESAURUS.COM

8. tire, debilitate, enervate.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for fatiguing

wearing, taxing, exhausting, debilitating, sapping, tiresome

Examples from the Web for fatiguing

Historical Examples of fatiguing

The day was excessively hot again, and walking was most fatiguing.
Explorations in Australia
John Forrest
This was our most fatiguing day, and we wanted our last encampment to be the best.
It Happened in Egypt
C. N. Williamson
In the present delicate state of their health this would be too fatiguing.
Welsh Fairy Tales
William Elliott Griffis
His next whim was to be a locksmith; but this calling he found too fatiguing.
The Fat and the Thin
Emile Zola
Help yourself, and remember you 'll have a fatiguing day to-morrow!
Sir Jasper Carew
Charles James Lever

British Dictionary definitions for fatiguing

fatigue

noun

physical or mental exhaustion due to exertion

a tiring activity or effort

physiol the temporary inability of an organ or part to respond to a stimulus because of overactivity

the progressive cracking of a material subjected to alternating stresses, esp vibrations

the temporary inability to respond to a situation or perform a function, because of overexposure or overactivitycompassion fatigue

any of the mainly domestic duties performed by military personnel, esp as a punishment
(as modifier)fatigue duties

(plural) special clothing worn by military personnel to carry out such duties

verb -tigues, -tiguing or -tigued

to make or become weary or exhausted

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

Derived Formsfatigable (ˈfætɪɡəbəl), adjectivefatigueless, adjective

Word Origin for fatigue

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 fatiguing

fatigue

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.

fatigue

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

fatiguing in Medicine

fatigue

[fə-tēg′]

n.

Physical or mental weariness resulting from exertion.

A sensation of boredom and lassitude due to absence of stimulation, to monotony, or to lack of interest in one's surroundings.

The decreased capacity or complete inability of an organism, organ, or part to function normally because of excessive stimulation or prolonged exertion.