wear

verb

\ ˈwer

wore\ ˈwȯr

\; worn\ ˈwȯrn

\; wearing

Definition of wear

(Entry 1 of 3)

transitive verb

1 : to bear or have on the person wore a coat

2a : to use habitually for clothing, adornment, or assistance wears a size 10 wear glasses

b : to carry on the person wear a sword

3a : to hold the rank or dignity or position signified by (an ornament) wear the royal crown

b : exhibit, present wore a happy smile commend the book for wearing its research so lightly— Brad Leithauser

c : to show or fly (a flag or colors) on a ship

4a : to cause to deteriorate by use

b : to impair or diminish by use or attrition : consume or waste gradually letters on the stone worn away by weathering

5 : to produce gradually by friction or attrition wear a hole in the rug

6 : to exhaust or lessen the strength of : weary, fatigue

7 : to cause (a ship) to go about with the stern presented to the wind

8 British : to accept or tolerate without complaint : put up with —usually used in negative constructions your mates wouldn't wear it— Colin MacInnes

9 : take on sense 3a

intransitive verb

1a : to endure use : last under use or the passage of time material that will wear for years

b : to retain quality or vitality the classics wear well

2a : to diminish or decay through use the heels of his shoes began to wear

b : to diminish or fail with the passage of time the effect of the drug wore off the day wore on

c : to grow or become by attrition or use the blade wore dull

3 of a ship : to change to an opposite tack by turning the stern to the wind — compare tack

wear on

: irritate, fray the constant beeping wore on my nerves

wear the trousers or wear the pants

: to have the controlling authority in a household

wear thin

1 : to become weak or ready to give way my patience was wearing thin

2 : to become trite, unconvincing, or out-of-date an argument that quickly wore thin

wear

noun

Definition of wear (Entry 2 of 3)

1 : the act of wearing : the state of being worn : use clothes for everyday wear

2a : clothing or an article of clothing usually of a particular kind especially : clothing worn for a special occasion or popular during a specific period

b : fashion, vogue

3 : wearing quality : durability under use

4 : the result of wearing or use : diminution or impairment due to use wear-resistant surface

Wear

geographical name

\ ˈwir

Definition of Wear (Entry 3 of 3)

river 67 miles (108 kilometers) long in northern England flowing into the North Sea at Sunderland

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Examples of wear in a Sentence

Verb

He was wearing blue jeans. She wore a red blouse to work. White coats are often worn by doctors. He doesn't wear a watch. a badge worn by police officers Were you wearing a seat belt? She wears her hair in a ponytail. I used to wear my hair long. The teacher was wearing a frown. He wore a hole in his pants.

Noun

shoes that are perfect for everyday wear The deck is built to withstand years of wear. I got a lot of wear out of these boots. a new line of evening wear The carpet is showing signs of wear. You should inspect the tires for wear.

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Other swag — like a Burger King crown to look like the hat worn by Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), bleeding ketchup packets designed after Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), and special Stranger Things T-shirts and pins — will also be available. — Dave Quinn, PEOPLE.com, "Stranger Things-Themed 'Upside Down' Whoppers Are Coming to Burger King — But Only in 11 Cities," 13 June 2019 The Dylan of Rolling Thunder Revue is a surly troubadour in eyeliner and patchy white face paint, which was possibly, or quite probably not, inspired by the stage makeup worn by Kiss. — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, "Martin Scorsese’s Bob Dylan Film Rolling Thunder Revue Is One of the Most Truthful Movies You’ll See in 2019," 12 June 2019 Parker’s numerous dressing gowns are spot on, and the clingy gowns worn by Divito and Chapman are comely. — Joanne Engelhardt, The Mercury News, "Theater review: Coward’s ‘Present Laughter’ opens at Pear Theatre," 12 June 2019 The cover, stained and worn by the imperceptible fingerprints of generations past, reads: Disegni di Leonardo da Vinci Restaurati da Pompeo Leoni (drawings by Leonardo da Vinci conserved by Pompeo Leoni). — Claudia Kalb, National Geographic, "Why Leonardo da Vinci’s brilliance endures, 500 years after his death," 12 June 2019 There have also been updates to the video equipment used in the cars, interview rooms decked out to the best available, and body cams worn by the officers. — David Taylor, Houston Chronicle, "Dayton Mayor Wadzeck discusses future growth, road projects," 12 June 2019 The helmets worn by soldiers and Marines in Iraq and Afghanistan have also been shown to be faulty. — Andrew Cockburn, Harper's magazine, "The Military-Industrial Virus," 10 June 2019 From the Women’s March to protests at the Kavanaugh hearings, the robes have been worn by protestors refusing to be silenced. — De Elizabeth, Teen Vogue, "Kylie Jenner Threw a "Handmaid's Tale" Birthday Party and Fans Are Not Happy," 9 June 2019 Even more distracting is the sheer amount of makeup worn by Jean, Raven, and Storm at any given time in the film. — Anne Cohen, refinery29.com, "Dark Phoenix Isn’t Quite As Bad As The Game of Thrones Finale, But It’s Close," 7 June 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Winners in the evening wear/social impact preliminaries will receive $300 each in scholarship money. — Mary Colurso | Mcolurso@al.com, al.com, "Miss Alabama 2019: Tiara Pennington, Miss University of Alabama, takes the crown," 8 June 2019 The Air Force personnel in the video wear arm patches from the 99th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron, based at Beale Air Force Base, California. — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "Watch A U-2 Spy Plane Pilot Suit Up and Take Off on a Mission Over the Middle East," 20 Mar. 2019 Some scientists in other fields, such as experts in tooth wear, are open to the idea. — Michael Greshko, National Geographic, "A change in our diets may have changed the way we speak," 14 Mar. 2019 Besides wear-and-tear from heavy use, escalators nationwide have been damaged by debris, or by biowastes when people relieve themselves on conveyances. — Mike Lindblom, The Seattle Times, "Escalators at UW light-rail station keep breaking down; Sound Transit will improve them — and open a staircase," 26 Oct. 2018 There are some people who come back and get a new hat every couple of years, but others will re-wear or rotate their hats. — Kate Samuelson, Time, "A Royal Hat Designer Breaks Down the Fancy Hats You'll See at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Wedding," 11 May 2018 Wipe pearls with a soft cloth after each wear to remove body oils and perfume that can yellow them. — Lauren Smith, Good Housekeeping, "How to Clean Your Jewelry Like a Pro," 7 May 2019 Today, the new pair headed out for a day of errands together in casual wear. — Vogue, "Katie Holmes and Jamie Foxx Raise the Bar on Off-Duty Couple Style," 16 Apr. 2019 The Best Everyday Underwear Perhaps surprisingly, given cotton’s bad rap in performance wear, Kari Traa’s Attraktiv Hipster, a 95 percent cotton, 5 percent elastane blend, was a close second favorite. — Kassondra Cloos, Outside Online, "The Best Women’s Active Outdoor Underwear," 6 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'wear.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries near wear

weaponshawing

weaponsmith

weapons of mass destruction

Statistics for wear

Last Updated

17 Jun 2019

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Time Traveler for wear

The first known use of wear was before the 12th century

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More Definitions for wear

wear

verb

English Language Learners Definition of wear

(Entry 1 of 2)

: to use or have (something) as clothing : to have (a shirt, pants, etc.) over part of your body

: to use or have (something) on your body

: to grow or arrange (your hair) in a particular way

wear

noun

English Language Learners Definition of wear (Entry 2 of 2)

: the act of using something as clothing : the act of wearing something

: the act of using something

: clothing that is designed for a specified kind of person, occasion, or use

See the full definition for wear in the English Language Learners Dictionary

wear

verb

\ ˈwer

wore\ ˈwȯr \; worn\ ˈwȯrn \; wearing

Kids Definition of wear

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : to use as an article of clothing or decoration He's wearing boots. She wears a ribbon in her hair.

2 : to carry or use on the body I am wearing perfume.

3 : show entry 1 sense 1 He always wears a smile.

4 : to damage, waste, or produce by continued use … I had gone … by a different way so as not to wear a trail.— Scott O'Dell, Island of the Blue Dolphins

5 : to make tired

6 : to last through long use The cloth wears well.

7 : to lessen or end with the passing of time The day wore on.

wear out

1 : to make useless by long or hard use

2 : tire entry 1 sense 1