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Perfect Stranger Posted 10 years ago
Vocabulary

Wear out/wear down/run down

Dear Users,

The dictionary I use doesn't really seem to indicate any difference between wear out and wear down and I'm wondering if there's any difference between the two, especially when it comes to describing people's state of mind and/or physical tiredness. Also, I'm curious if there's any difference when we apply those two to talking about clothes.

Thank you

P.S. Is run down only used when talking about buildings?
  

Top answer

We don't use "wear down" to talk about clothes, only "wear out". ) When used about people, "wear out" tends to be more physical and "wear down" more mental, though this is not completely clear cut. For example: The kids are worn out from all that running around.

— GPY

  • We don't use "wear down" to talk about clothes, only "wear out".
  • ) When used about people, "wear out" tends to be more physical and "wear down" more mental, though this is not completely clear cut.
  • For example: The kids are worn out from all that running around.
  • She wore him down with her constant nagging.
  • g.
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1 Answers
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We don't use "wear down" to talk about clothes, only "wear out". (It is possible to use "wear down" in its literal sense of "physically abrade" when talking about, say, the heels of shoes, but this is a slightly different usage.)

When used about people, "wear out" tends to be more physical and "wear down" more mental, though this is not completely clear cut. For example:

The k
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