wear
UK /wɛə/ · US /wɛ(ə)ɹ/ verb, noun, proper noun
Also a form of weir
Forms wears wearing wore worn weared ware worne wer weir
- verb To carry or have equipped on or about one's body, as an item of clothing, equipment, decoration, perfume, etc. “He's wearing some nice pants today.”
- verb To have or carry on one's person habitually, consistently; or, to maintain in a particular fashion or manner. “He wears eyeglasses.”
- verb To bear or display in one's aspect or appearance. “She wore a smile all day.”
- verb To eat away at, erode, diminish, or consume gradually; to cause a gradual deterioration in; to produce (some change) through attrition, exposure, or constant use. “You're going to wear a hole in the bottom of those shoes.”
- verb (intransitive, copulative) To undergo gradual deterioration; become impaired; be reduced or consumed gradually due to any continued process, activity, or use. “The tiles were wearing thin due to years of children's feet.”
- verb To exhaust, fatigue, expend, or weary. “His neverending criticism has finally worn my patience.”
- verb (intransitive, colloquial) (in the phrase "wearing on (someone)") To cause annoyance, irritation, fatigue, or weariness near the point of an exhaustion of patience. “Her high pitched voice is really wearing on me lately.”
- verb (colloquial, with "it") To overcome one's reluctance and endure a (previously specified) situation. “I know you don't like working with him, but you'll just have to wear it.”
- noun (in combination) Clothing. “footwear; outdoor wear; maternity wear”
- noun Damage to the appearance and/or strength of an item caused by use over time.
- noun Fashion.
- noun Wearing.
- verb (now chiefly UK dialectal, transitive) To guard; watch; keep watch, especially from entry or invasion.
- verb (now chiefly UK dialectal, transitive) To defend; protect.
- verb (now chiefly UK dialectal, transitive) To ward off; prevent from approaching or entering; drive off; repel.
- verb (now chiefly UK dialectal, transitive) To conduct or guide with care or caution, as into a fold or place of safety.
- proper noun A river in the counties of County Durham and Tyne and Wear, north east England. The cities of Durham and Sunderland are situated upon its grand banks.
Synonyms
gybe clothing article of clothing vesture wearable habiliment wearing have on bear wear off wear out wear down wear thin hold out endure break bust fall apart tire wear upon tire out weary jade outwear fag out fag fatigue put on get into don
Etymology
Inherited from Middle English weren, werien, from Old English werian (“to clothe, cover over; put on, wear, use; stock (land)”), from Proto-West Germanic *waʀjan, from Proto-Germanic *wazjaną (“to clothe”), from Proto-Indo-European *wes- (“to dress, put on (clothes)”).
Cognate to Sanskrit वस्ते (váste), Ancient Greek ἕννυμι (hénnumi, “put on”), Latin vestis (“garment”) (English vest), Albanian vesh (“dress up, wear”), Tocharian B wäs-, Old Armenian զգենում (zgenum), Welsh gwisgo, Hittite 𒉿𒀸- (waš-).
Originally a weak verb (i.e. with a past tense in -ed), it became irregular during the Middle English period by analogy with verbs like beren (whence bear) and teren (whence tear).
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-West Germanic *warjan, from Proto-Germanic *warjaną (“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”).
Probably identical with British Latin Vedra, itself of Celtic origin.
Webster’s 1913
- noun Same as Weir.
- verb To cause to go about, as a vessel, by putting the helm up, instead of alee as in tacking, so that the vessel's bow is turned away from, and her stern is presented to, the wind, and, as she turns still farther, her sails fill on the other side; to veer.
- verb To carry or bear upon the person; to bear upon one's self, as an article of clothing, decoration, warfare, bondage, etc.; to have appendant to one's body; to have on; as, to wear a coat; to wear a shackle.
- verb To have or exhibit an appearance of, as an aspect or manner; to bear; as, she wears a smile on her countenance. "He wears the rose of youth upon him." Shak.
Etymology [Cf. Veer.]
Etymology [OE. weren, werien, AS. werian to carry, to wear, as arms or clothes; akin to OHG. werien, weren, to clothe, Goth. wasjan, L. vestis clothing, vestire to clothe, Gr. vas. Cf. Vest.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “wear”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details