well-worn
Americanadjective
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showing the effects of extensive use or wear.
well-worn carpets.
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trite, hackneyed, or stale.
a well-worn saying.
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fittingly or becomingly worn or borne.
a well-worn reserve that never seems haughty.
adjective
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so much used as to be affected by wear
a well-worn coat
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used too often; hackneyed
a well-worn phrase
Etymology
Origin of well-worn
First recorded in 1615–25
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.
Rocket Lab is following a well-worn path by SpaceX, which has analysts cheering on its future as an “emerging space platform.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026
Only one of them, Sean “Poopies” McInerney, a surf bro so gullible that I’m not sure he’s capable of informed legal consent, fits into “Best and Last” like a well-worn punching bag.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
Bear in mind, this is the perspective of an awkward wallflower surrounded by too-cool gothlings clutching well-worn copies of Rice’s books.
From Salon ● Jun. 13, 2026
She recalled being surprised by how scruffily dressed the businessman was when she met him, finding him in flip-flops, some well-worn red shorts and a T-shirt.
From BBC ● Jun. 8, 2026
Neither Francis nor Griffith was long satisfied that evening by restatements of well-worn hypotheses.
From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson
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.
