wear thin
Idioms-
Be weakened or diminished gradually, as in My patience is wearing thin . [Late 1800s]
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Become less convincing, acceptable, or popular, as in His excuses are wearing thin . [First half of 1990s] Both usages transfer the thinning of a physical object, such as cloth, to nonmaterial characteristics.
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.
But the whole joke is wearing thin for many European leaders.
From BBC
“Right, let’s just get through Antarctica,” Mr. MacPherson said, his patience wearing thin.
From Literature
Hopefully, that mirth is starting to wear thin.
From Salon
Yet patience on that promise is wearing thin, especially given how the season had ended less than an hour before.
From Los Angeles Times
The arguments about the past may wear thin.
From BBC
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.
