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wear down

   Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Medical, Legal, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.06 sec.
wear someone down 
1. Fig. to exhaust someone. This hot weather wears me down. The steamy weather wore down the tourists and made them stay in their hotels.
2. Fig. to reduce someone to submission or agreement by constant badgering. Finally they wore me down and I told them what they wanted to know. The interrogation wore down the suspect.
See also: wear

wear something down

to grind something away; to erode something. The constant rubbing of the door wore the carpet down. The rubbing of the door wore down the carpet.
See also: wear

wear down

Fig. to break down with wear; to erode. The steps had worn down so much that each one was curved and slanted dangerously.
See also: wear


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Joe's task was to wear down that strength, not with one blow, nor ten, but with blow after blow, without end, until that enormous strength should be beaten sheer out of its body.
Moreover, the waves, I suspect, do not so much construct as wear down a material which has already acquired consistency.
In tricks and skill and experience he was the master, and though he could land nothing vital, he proceeded scientifically to chop and wear down his opponent.
 
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