WEAR AND TEAR

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does wear and tear mean? 

• WEAR AND TEAR (noun)
  The noun WEAR AND TEAR has 1 sense:

1. decrease in value of an asset due to obsolescence or use

  Familiarity information: WEAR AND TEAR used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• WEAR AND TEAR (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Decrease in value of an asset due to obsolescence or use

Classified under:

Nouns denoting possession and transfer of possession

Synonyms:

depreciation; wear and tear

Hypernyms ("wear and tear" is a kind of...):

non-cash expense (an expense (such as depreciation) that is not paid for in cash)

financial loss (loss of money or decrease in financial value)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "wear and tear"):

straight-line method; straight-line method of depreciation ((accounting) a method of calculating depreciation by taking an equal amount of the asset's cost as an expense for each year of the asset's useful life)

write-down; write-off ((accounting) reduction in the book value of an asset)

 Context examples 

You might have made trips to the repair shop—things show wear and tear at these times.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

Osteoarthritis tends to occur later in life and has been largely considered as a degenerative disorder in which pain is produced by damage and wear and tear to bone and cartilage.

(Joint lubricating fluid plays key role in osteoarthritic pain, University of Cambridge)

The wear and tear of spring storms and melting snows had underwashed the bank and in one place had made a small cave out of a narrow fissure.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

What has been developed is a dip-coated method — we do not know the strength of this coating and its ability to resist wear and tear in real conditions outside the laboratory, or the commercial viability of the product, Gosvami says.

(Mango leaf extract can stop ships from rusting, SciDev.Net)

Researchers have made a new discovery about how seemingly minor aspects of the internal structure of bone can be strengthened to withstand wear and tear, a finding that could help patients suffering from osteoporosis.

(Discovery may lead to osteoporosis treatment, National Science Foundation)

Some happy talent, and some fortunate opportunity, may form the two sides of the ladder on which some men mount, but the rounds of that ladder must be made of stuff to stand wear and tear; and there is no substitute for thorough-going, ardent, and sincere earnestness.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

We've known that this process occurs when we sleep to clear away the neurological wear and tear of the day, but now it appears that the same thing happens when we start to lose sleep.

(Lack of Sleep Makes Brain to Literally Eat Itself, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)