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¹weary

adjective wea·ry \ˈwir-ē\

: lacking strength, energy, or freshness because of a need for rest or sleep

: bored or annoyed by something because you have seen it, heard it, done it, etc., many times or for a long time

: causing you to feel tired

wea·ri·erwea·ri·est

Full Definition of WEARY

: exhausted in strength, endurance, vigor, or freshness

: expressing or characteristic of weariness <a weary sign>

: having one's patience, tolerance, or pleasure exhausted —used with of <soon grew weary of waiting>

: wearisome

— wea·ri·ly \ˈwir-ə-lē\ adverb

— wea·ri·ness \ˈwir-ē-nəs\ noun

See weary defined for English-language learners

See weary defined for kids

Examples of WEARY

I would remember the potential for return, all things circling as they do, into something like fullness, small moments of completion that weave together, like Penelope's cloth, doing and undoing themselves by turns, an unfinished pattern that guides a —wearytraveler home … —Paul Sorrell, Parabola, May 2000
But for the wilted weeds that managed to jut forth in wiry clumps where the mortar was cracked and washed away, the viaduct wall was barren of everything except the affirmation of a weary industrial city's prolonged and triumphant struggle to monumentalize its ugliness. —Philip Roth, American Pastoral, 1997
Every day for a week Ellsworth showed up to see Clarence and every day Miss Eunice and Mr. George Edward would exchange weary glances and shrugs … —Randall Kenan, Let the Dead Bury Their Dead, 1992
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Origin of WEARY

Middle English wery, from Old English wērig; akin to Old High German wuorag intoxicated and perhaps to Greek aōros sleep

First Known Use: before 12th century

Related to WEARY

Synonyms: all in, aweary [archaic], beat, beaten, bleary, burned-out (or burnt-out), bushed, dead, done, done in, drained, exhausted, fatigued, jaded, knackered [British], limp, logy (also loggy), played out, pooped [slang], prostrate, spent, tapped out, tired, tuckered (out), washed-out, wearied, wiped out, worn, worn-out, worn to a frazzle

Antonyms: unwearied

Rhymes with WEARY

beery, bleary, cheery, dreary, eerie, leery, Peary, peri, quaere, query, smeary, sphery, teary, veery

²weary

verb wea·ry \ˈwir-ē\

: to make (someone) very tired

wea·riedwea·ry·ing

Full Definition of WEARY

intransitive verb

: to become weary (see ¹weary)

transitive verb

: to make weary

See weary defined for English-language learners

Examples of WEARY

What wearies me about Dickens, however, is his excessive use of words. —Will Manley, Booklist, 1 Nov. 2006
Does it weary me to find some women of the next generation reinventing the wheel when it comes to planning their lives and dreaming of their romantic futures? —Margo Jefferson, New York Times Book Review, 15 Apr. 2001
I doubted what Indonesia now had to offer and wearied of being new all over again. —Barack Obama, Dreams from My Father, (1995) 2004
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Origin of WEARY

(see ¹weary)

First Known Use: before 12th century

Related to WEARY

Synonyms: jade, tire, ²bore

Antonyms: absorb, busy, engage, engross, enthrall (or enthral), fascinate, grip, interest, intrigue

Synonym Discussion of WEARY

tire, weary, fatigue, exhaust, jade, fag mean to make or become unable or unwilling to continue. tire implies a draining of one's strength or patience <the long ride tired us out>. weary stresses tiring until one is unable to endure more of the same thing <wearied of the constant arguing>. fatigue suggests great lassitude from excessive strain or undue effort <fatigued by the day's chores>. exhaust implies complete draining of strength by hard exertion <shoveling snow exhausted him>. jade suggests the loss of all freshness and eagerness <appetites jaded by overindulgence>. fag implies a drooping with fatigue <shoppers all fagged out by the Christmas rush>.

WEARILY Defined for Kids