wear away
phrasal verb
wore away; worn away; wearing away; wears away
: to gradually disappear or to cause (something) to gradually disappear or become thinner, smaller, etc., because of use
The paint on the sign had worn away.
Even a trickle of water will eventually wear rock away.
—often used as (be) worn awayThe table's finish was worn away.
Examples of wear away in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In some cases, this practice can wear away at the tooth enamel.
—
Sherri Gordon, Health, 26 Mar. 2025
That’s just a small drop of time for a piece of hardware on the moon with no water or wind to wear away at it.
—Amanda Kooser, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2025
Some sections of planking are worn away but enough remain for archaeologists to consider the ship as an oldest-of-its-kind find.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 7 Mar. 2025
The whole process is starting to wear away at the Andersons, especially Yvette’s 80-year-old mother, Katherine, who suffers from Stage 4 kidney failure.
—Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN, 8 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for wear away
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Sherri Gordon, Health, 26 Mar. 2025
That’s just a small drop of time for a piece of hardware on the moon with no water or wind to wear away at it.
—Amanda Kooser, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2025
Some sections of planking are worn away but enough remain for archaeologists to consider the ship as an oldest-of-its-kind find.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 7 Mar. 2025
The whole process is starting to wear away at the Andersons, especially Yvette’s 80-year-old mother, Katherine, who suffers from Stage 4 kidney failure.
—Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN, 8 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for wear away
Cite this Entry
“Wear away.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wear%20away. Accessed 2 Apr. 2025.
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