Past Tense of Wear | Definition & Examples
The verb wear, meaning “be clothed in” or “degrade through use,” has the simple past tense wore and past participle worn. It is an irregular verb and doesn’t add “-ed” to form the past tense.
Although wear is irregular, it rhymes with and follows the same pattern as “bear,” meaning “give birth to,” and “tear,” meaning “rip.”
| Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|
| I’ll never forget the dress she wore on our first date! | It was a special occasion, so I picked the shoes I had worn on our wedding day. |
| As the brakes wore down, they produced lots of dust. | When Sheila opened the package, she could tell immediately that the dress had been worn already. |
What is the past tense of wear?
The simple past tense of wear is wore. This is true whether it means “be clothed in” (e.g., “Simona wore a purple dress”) or “degrade through use” (e.g., “The friction wore through the fabric”).
Dad wore the expression of someone who really didn’t want to be there.
With every turn of the wheel, the brake pad wore thinner and thinner.
Past participle of wear
The past participle of wear is worn, and it is used to form perfect tenses and the passive voice.
The frown that Prisha had worn at the start of the day was gone by lunchtime.
The christening gown was yellowed and delicate because it had been worn by three generations of babies.
Frequently asked questions about the past tense of wear
- Is weared a word?
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Weared is not a word in standard English except in sailing, when wear means “change tack by bringing the stern around.” The simple past of wear is wore, and the past participle is worn.
You might encounter “weared” in informal circumstances, but it is almost certain to be incorrect.
You can check your spelling and grammar with the QuillBot Grammar Checker.
- Is wored a word?
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Wored is not a word in standard English. For the verb wear, the simple past is wore and the past participle is worn.
You might find “wored” in nonstandard dialects, or used for humor, but it is not correct in formal English.
You can use the QuillBot Grammar Checker if you aren’t sure if your writing is free of errors.
- What is the past tense of wear clothes?
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The past tense of wear clothes is wore clothes in the simple past. The past participle of wear is worn, and it is used for perfect tenses (e.g., “Pete had worn the same suit to every wedding for 10 years”) and the passive voice (e.g., “The clothes hadn’t been worn all winter and smelled musty”).
You can use the QuillBot Grammar Checker to check your writing for errors.
