wear thin

Related to wear thin: worn thin

wear thin

1. Of an object, often a fabric, to physically become thinner or cause to become worn, as from frequent use. A noun or pronoun can be used between "wear" and "thin." You can see here how the leather has been worn thin by years of use.
2. To diminish or become less effective. Please try to behave. My patience is beginning to wear thin. It was cute the first few times that he did it, but his little routine has worn thin.
See also: thin, wear
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

wear thin

1. Be weakened or diminished gradually, as in My patience is wearing thin. [Late 1800s]
2. Become less convincing, acceptable, or popular, as in His excuses are wearing thin. [First half of 1990s] Both usages transfer the thinning of a physical object, such as cloth, to nonmaterial characteristics.
See also: thin, wear
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

wear ˈthin

begin to become less; become less interesting or amusing: My patience is beginning to wear very thin. Don’t you think that joke’s wearing a bit thin? (= we have heard it many times before)
See also: thin, wear
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

wear thin

1. To be weakened or eroded gradually: Her patience is wearing thin.
2. To become less convincing, acceptable, or popular, as through repeated use: excuses that are wearing thin.
See also: thin, wear
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition.
See also:
  • addict
  • addict (one) to (something)
  • addict to
  • get (one's) back up
  • get back up
  • get someone's back up
  • get/put somebody's back up
  • have (one's) back up
  • have back up
  • get (one's) Irish up
References in periodicals archive
The Bees boss was fuming after Danny Foster's own goal handed Orient victory and insists his patience is now starting to wear thin.
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Wear thin synthetic layers to wick away sweat and a wind-resistant top layer such as Gore-Tex.Wear a hat and mittens, do an indoor warm-up first, keep hydrated and change out of cold damp clothes quickly when you finish running.
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Dress appropriately: Wear thin layers of clothes rather than one thick layer; choose clothes made with wool, cotton, or fleecy synthetic materials; outside, wear a hat and warm, dry, flat, non-slip footwear.
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It would be difficult to accuse anyone of dragging their feet but the patience of the public is starting to wear thin with a belief that more should have been done to nip this epidemic in the bud.
Patience wears thin
Haunting a show like this is the question of whether the sparkle and facile perfection of the illusionism, as well as the cuter jokes, will wear thin. I'm inclined to give Armstrong the benefit of the doubt.
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But now the joke is beginning to wear thin. David, of Wigan, Lancs, said: "We can't explain it.
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However, Mr Unwin admitted that the patience of people living near the Norton Farm fields was already beginning to wear thin.
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It took a while, but after the visual candy started to wear thin this game became something that really didn''t do the graphics justice.
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They still know how to work a crowd but frontman Dolf de Borst's constant demands for more applause did wear thin, not unlike his piratical moustache.
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Mick O'Dwyer will demand a response but another season in the bottom division provides a sobering thought as the initial giddy enthusiasm of his reign begins to wear thin.
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