wear-out

or wear·out

[ wair-out ]
/ ˈwɛərˌaʊt /

noun

the act or fact of wearing out; a worn-out condition: wear-out at the knees of pants.

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What does “barren” mean?
a cylindrical wooden container with slightly bulging sides.
Worn down by dullness, tedious repetition.
unproductive; unfruitful
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Origin of wear-out

First recorded in 1895–1900; noun use of verb phrase wear out

Words nearby wear-out

wearing apparel, wearing course, wearisome, wear off, wear one's heart on one's sleeve, wear-out, wear out one's welcome, wearproof, wear the pants, wear thin, wear two hats
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for wear-out

  • Parliament too has its tasks, if thou wilt look; fit to wear-out the lives of toughest men.

    Past and Present|Thomas Carlyle

British Dictionary definitions for wear-out

wear out

verb (adverb)

to make or become unfit or useless through wear
(tr) to exhaust or tire
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

Idioms and Phrases with wear-out

wear out
1

Become or cause to become unusable through long or heavy use, as in She wears out her shoes in no time, or The coupling in this device has worn out. [Early 1400s]

2

Exhaust, tire, as in I was worn out from packing all those books. Also see tired out. [First half of 1500s]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.