What Does โWear sb downโ Mean?
โWear sb downโ means to make someone feel tired, less confident, or less determined by persistent effort or pressure.
Introduction
The phrasal verb โwear sb downโ is often used to describe a situation where someone gradually loses strength or patience because of continuous pressure or persuasion. Understanding the โwear sb downโ meaning helps learners express ideas about persistence and influence in everyday conversations. Whether in arguments, negotiations, or emotional situations, this phrase shows how repeated actions can affect a personโs mindset or energy over time.
Quick Info Box
- Phrasal verb: wear somebody down
- Type: transitive
- Level: B2
- Short meaning: To tire or weaken someone by persistent effort
Structure (Grammar Rules)
โWear sb downโ is a transitive and inseparable phrasal verb. This means the object (sb) always comes after the verb and cannot be placed in between โwearโ and โdown.โ
Correct pattern: wear + somebody + down
Incorrect pattern: wear + down + somebody
How to Use Wear sb down?
Use โwear sb downโ when describing how continuous pressure or repeated actions make someone less resistant or tired. It is common in contexts like debates, negotiations, or emotional situations where one person tries to persuade or exhaust another.
Examples
Imagine a teacher who keeps asking a student to finish their homework. Over time, the student might feel worn down.
- After hours of arguing, she finally wore him down and got him to agree.
- The constant questions wore the witness down during the trial.
- Salespeople often wear customers down with persistent offers.
- The long hike wore me down, but I kept going.
- Wear sb down in a sentence: He tried to wear his parents down until they let him go to the party.
Common Mistakes
People sometimes confuse the word order or use the wrong preposition.
- Incorrect: I wore down him with my arguments.
- Correct: I wore him down with my arguments.
- Incorrect: She wore him out down.
- Correct: She wore him down after hours of talking.
Differences / Synonyms
Similar phrasal verbs include โwear outโ and โwear off,โ but they have different meanings.
- Wear out: To make someone extremely tired physically or mentally.
- Wear off: When an effect or feeling gradually disappears.
- Wear sb down: To make someone give up or lose strength because of ongoing pressure.
For example, โwear outโ focuses more on exhaustion, while โwear sb downโ emphasizes reducing resistance through persistence.
Common Collocations
โWear sb downโ is often used with objects related to peopleโs emotions or physical state.
- Wear someone down with questions โ using many questions to tire someone mentally.
- Wear someone down with persistence โ applying constant pressure.
- Wear someone down through negotiation โ slowly convincing someone.
- Wear someone down by arguing โ using repeated arguments.
Related Phrasal Verbs
Here are related phrasal verbs of wear sb down:
Real-life Dialogue
Here is a short conversation using โwear sb downโ:
Anna: He kept asking me to help with his project.
Ben: Did you say no?
Anna: At first, yes. But after he kept insisting, he wore me down.
Ben: So you ended up helping him?
Anna: Yes, I couldnโt say no anymore.
Practice
Try filling in the blank with the correct form of the phrasal verb:
- After hours of arguing, she finally __________ him __________ and got what she wanted.
- The long meeting __________ everyone __________.
- He tried to __________ his parents __________ until they agreed.
FAQ
- What does โwear sb downโ mean? It means to make someone tired or less determined through continuous pressure.
- Is โwear sb downโ separable? No, it is inseparable. The object must come after the whole phrasal verb.
- Can I use โwear sb downโ for physical tiredness? It usually refers to mental or emotional fatigue, not just physical tiredness.
- What is a synonym for โwear sb downโ? โWear outโ can be similar but focuses more on physical exhaustion.
- How do I use โwear sb downโ in a sentence? Example: The teacher wore the students down with constant tests.
