worn-out
adjective
worn or used beyond repair.
worn-out
American
[wawrn-out, wohrn-]
/ ˈwɔrnˈaʊt, ˈwoʊrn- /
adjective
-
worn or used beyond repair.
-
depleted of energy, strength, or enthusiasm; exhausted; fatigued.
worn-out
British
adjective
-
worn or used until threadbare, valueless, or useless
-
exhausted; very weary
worn out
Idioms
Etymology
Origin of worn-out
First recorded in 1585–95
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.
See Examples For:
Fans sit on plastic chairs arranged on the sandy floor, their chatter mingling with the hum of a worn-out generator.
From Barron's ● Jun. 18, 2026
I make hotpads from worn-out terry cloth towels and I turn fabric scraps into comforter tops.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
Hundreds of watches, an encyclopedic knowledge of the movie and its production, a worn-out DVD copy hanging on by a thread, and a whole career later, I still owe it everything.
From Salon ● May 1, 2026
Her look evolves from a worn-out cog to a biker-like granny who’d seem natural riding on the back of Dennis Hopper’s hog.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026
He pulled out a piece of paper from his worn-out binder.
From "Breaking Through" by Francisco Jiménez
The president went on to say he planned to renovate a "dilapidated, worn out, and very dangerous" golf course in Washington called East Potomac Golf Links, located on an island in the Potomac River.
From Barron's ● Jun. 28, 2026
Osteoarthritis is not simply about "worn out" joints.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 4, 2026
“It’s gone beyond political to exhaustion. ‘I’m just worn out.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 4, 2026
When we do notice, often long after they’re worn out, we tell ourselves we’ll replace them tomorrow.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 28, 2025
We ate and drank and went home, I for one worn out, but pleased all in all with the way things had gone.
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
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.
