Wear Definition

wâr
wearing, wears, wore, worn
verb
wearing, wears, wore, worn
To have on the body or carry on the person (clothing, jewelry, a weapon, etc.)
Webster's New World
To become impaired, consumed, or diminished by constant use, friction, etc.
Shoes that have begun to wear.
Webster's New World
To hold the position or rank symbolized by.
To wear the heavyweight crown.
Webster's New World
To become in time; grow gradually.
Patience that is wearing thin.
Webster's New World
To dress in (a specified kind of attire) so as to be in style.
What college students are wearing this fall.
Webster's New World
noun
wears
The act of wearing or the state of being worn.
Webster's New World
Things, esp. clothes, worn, or for wearing, on the body [children's wear]
Webster's New World
Clothing, especially of a particular kind or for a particular use. Often used in combination.
Rainwear; footwear.
American Heritage
The fashion or proper style of dress or the like.
Webster's New World
Damage resulting from use or age.
The rug shows plenty of wear.
American Heritage
Antonyms:
suffix
Used to form nouns denoting clothing worn by a particular sex (e.g. menswear) or age of person (e.g. kidswear)
Wiktionary
idiom
wear the pants
  • To exercise controlling authority in a household.
American Heritage
wear thin
  • To be weakened or eroded gradually:

    Her patience is wearing thin.

  • To become less convincing, acceptable, or popular, as through repeated use:

    excuses that are wearing thin.

American Heritage
wear down
  • to make or become worn; lose or cause to lose thickness or height by use, friction, etc.
  • to tire out, or exhaust (a person); weary
Webster's New World
wear off
  • to pass away or diminish by degrees
Webster's New World
wear out
  • to make or become useless from continued wear or use
  • to waste or consume by degrees
Webster's New World

Other Word Forms of Wear

Noun

Singular:
wear
Plural:
wears

Origin of Wear

  • From Middle English weren, werien, from Old English werian (“to guard, keep, defend; ward off, hinder, prevent, forbid; restrain; occupy, inhabit; dam up; discharge obligations on (land)"), from Proto-Germanic *warjanÄ… (“to defend, protect, ward off"), from Proto-Indo-European *wer- (“to close, cover, protect, save, defend"). Cognate with Scots wer, weir (“to defend, protect"), Dutch weren (“to aver, ward off"), German wehren (“to fight"), Swedish värja (“to defend, ward off"), Icelandic verja (“to defend").

    From Wiktionary

  • From Middle English weren, werien, from Old English werian (“to clothe, cover over; put on, wear, use; stock (land)"), from Proto-Germanic *wazjanÄ… (“to clothe"), from Proto-Indo-European *wes- (“to dress, put on (clothes)"). Cognate to Sanskrit वस्ते (vaste), Ancient Greek ἕννυμι (hennumi, “put on"), Latin vestis (“garment"), Albanian vesh (“dress up, wear"), Tocharian B wäs-, Old Armenian Õ¦Õ£Õ¥Õ¶Õ¸Ö‚Õ´ (zgenum), Welsh gwisgo, Hittite waÅ¡-.

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English weren from Old English werian wes-2 in Indo-European roots

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

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