proverb · Words worth keeping
Everything is the worse for wearing.
Everything is the worse for wearing.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Use can cause wear that needs attention. The saying warns about deterioration while overlooking ways that use can also improve skill, familiarity or value.
What the words are saying
Everything is described as becoming worse through wearing. For an object, this can encourage maintenance and realistic expectations about its condition. The absolute should not be extended to a person’s worth or to every kind of repeated activity. Practice may improve a skill, and some changes can be repaired. A useful application examines the particular effect of use rather than assuming all change is decline.
Everyday example
A team checks worn tools and repairs what needs attention instead of replacing everything merely because it has been used.
When to use it
Use it to consider actual wear and maintenance needs.
What it does not mean
Age or use does not automatically reduce worth, and deterioration may be repairable.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases
Entry 1738 · Wearing
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English