wearier; weariest
1
: exhausted in strength, endurance, vigor, or freshness
2
: expressing or characteristic of weariness
a weary sign
3
: having one's patience, tolerance, or pleasure exhausted
used with of
soon grew weary of waiting
4

weary

2 of 2

verb

wearied; wearying

intransitive verb

: to become weary

transitive verb

: to make weary

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Sick and Tired: The Literal and Figurative Meanings of Lassitude

Lassitude and weariness make an interesting pair. As with many nearly synonymous pairs of words in English, one is derived from Latin and the other from Old English. Even though they both mean “the condition of being tired,” they are used in different ways. Following a common pattern, the Latinate word tends to be used in technical, medical, and formal writing, and the Old English-derived word is used when referring to physical, emotional, and spiritual qualities.

Lassitude comes from the Latin word lassus, meaning “weary.” Our English spelling comes from the French word that developed directly from Latin, borrowed in the 15th century. In French, the word las (masculine) or lasse (feminine) means “weary” or “tired,” and the idiom être las de means “to be sick and tired of.” This led to another English word with the same root: alas, a word that expresses sadness or disappointment, but conveys some measure of fatigue and resignation as well.

Though it sometimes is just a fancy word for fatigue in medical contexts, lassitude is also used in ways that are metaphorical and closer in meaning to “negligence”:

Congress was being choked by pettiness and lassitude.

The case was delayed because of sheer lassitude.

The failure was the result of moral lassitude.

Choose the Right Synonym for weary

tire, weary, fatigue, exhaust, jade 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

Examples of weary in a Sentence

Adjective 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 weary traveler 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
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Adjective
In 2006, the company reportedly sold a hundred thousand cases, but demand ran dry and Waterkeepers grew weary. Charles Bethea, The New Yorker, 2 Dec. 2024 At the center of the story are Phil (Timothy Spall) and Penny (Lesley Manville), a weary, unmarried couple burdened by their lack of love for each other and their crumbling household. Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 9 Dec. 2024
Verb
The later chronology, meanwhile, is sometimes blurred by the wearying cyclical repetition of addiction itself. Guy Lodge, Variety, 21 Nov. 2024 The sketch seemed to be SNL’s attempt to balance the cold open’s levity with a more biting tone about the wearying stakes of deciding the nation’s leadership. Amanda Wicks, The Atlantic, 3 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for weary 

Word History

Etymology

Adjective and Verb

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

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of weary was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near weary

Cite this Entry

“Weary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/weary. Accessed 29 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

weary

1 of 2 adjective
wearier; weariest
1
: worn out in strength, energy, or freshness
2
: showing or marked by weariness
3
: having one's patience, interest, or pleasure exhausted
weary of the delays
4

weary

2 of 2 verb
wearied; wearying
: to become or make weary

More from Merriam-Webster on weary

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