SINCE 1828
wear and tear
nounDefinition of wear and tear
: the loss, injury, or stress to which something is subjected by or in the course of use
especially
: normal depreciation
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Examples of wear and tear in a Sentence
my favorite jeans finally succumbed to wear and tear and had to be replaced
Recent Examples on the Web
The dollhouse was showing a little wear and tear when it was originally brought into Hospice of Medina County. — Alyssa Alfano, cleveland.com, "reCycle old bikes for a good cause," 5 Mar. 2018 Wood Floor Primer & Undercoat will help paint withstand the wear and tear that comes with being walked on. — Emma Bazilian, House Beautiful, "Ready For A Paint Makeover? Here's What You Need To Know About Primer," 16 Jan. 2019 Instead of taxing her car with all that wear and tear from a cross-country drive, Velma settled for a long train ride, first arriving in New York to see her first cousin Nancy Ann. — Andrew M. Davenport, Smithsonian, "Putting Enslaved Families’ Stories Back in the Monticello Narrative," 14 June 2018 Every time the roof moves, the machinery undergoes some wear and tear, and Duffy monitors the axles for cracks. — Daniel Beekman, The Seattle Times, "In $180 million ask for public money, Mariners cite retractable roof used 400 times per year," 28 Aug. 2018 Stiffer bones are more likely to be brittle, and when dealing with an animal millions of years old, the chances for the bones to be crushed through natural wear and tear, not to mention outside animal or human influence, are myriad. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Ancient Flyer: New Extremely Old Pterosaur Found in Utah," 13 Aug. 2018 After all, between Drake, who has little wear and tear, and Gore, who is as dependable as anyone in the NFL at his position, Miami shouldn’t feel obligated to draft a running back who must play this year. — Chris Perkins, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Perkins: Dolphins thrive at drafting RBs, but it's not a top need this year | Analysis," 4 Apr. 2018 Wilsonart Estate Plus Flooring Go ahead, bring on the foot traffic, the wear and tear, the abuse. — Rebecca Winzenried, ELLE Decor, "Home Magazine's 5th Annual Kitchen & Bath Awards 2003," 5 July 2012 While James has been putting up historic numbers, at 33 years of age, there may be only a few more years left before the wear and tear of 15 seasons in the NBA begins to show. — Jason Duaine Hahn, PEOPLE.com, "Golden State Warriors Win NBA Finals — in What Might Be LeBron James' Last Game as a Cavalier," 8 June 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'wear and tear.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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