wears down

verb

Definition of wears downnext
present tense third-person singular of wear down
as in wears out

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for wears down
breaks down
Verb
  • Sign up for our free The Daily Money newsletter, which breaks down complex consumer and financial news.
    — Betty Lin-Fisher, USA Today, 3 Oct. 2025
  • This morning, Pierre Thomas breaks down the charges.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 Sep. 2025
Definition of breaks down
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

wears (away)
wears down
wears on
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Wears down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wears%20down. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Using Bullet Points ( • )

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

Your vs. You're: How to Use Them Correctly
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 3

8 Real (and Perceived) Redundant Words

Birds Say the Darndest Things

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

Better Ways to Say 'This Sucks'
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 3

8 Real (and Perceived) Redundant Words
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
vintage ad illustration of a smiling woman
Brand Name Vocabulary Quiz You’re gonna need some moxie to ace this quiz
See All