/ English Dictionary

WEAR AWAY

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Become ground down or deteriorate

Example:

Her confidence eroded

Synonyms:

eat at; erode; gnaw; gnaw at; wear away

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "wear away" is one way to...):

crumble; decay; dilapidate (fall into decay or ruin)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s

Derivation:

wearing away ((geology) the mechanical process of wearing or grinding something down (as by particles washing over it))

Sense 2

Meaning:

Diminish, as by friction

Example:

Erosion wore away the surface

Synonyms:

wear away; wear off

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "wear away" is one way to...):

remove; take; take away; withdraw (remove something concrete, as by lifting, pushing, or taking off, or remove something abstract)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "wear away"):

abrade; abrase; corrade; rub down; rub off (wear away)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Sense 3

Meaning:

Cut away in small pieces

Synonyms:

wear away; whittle away; whittle down

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "wear away" is one way to...):

damage (inflict damage upon)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

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