My Patience is Wearing Thin

Here is a phrase that all teachers can relate to.  Actually, I am sure most people can relate to this.  ‘My patience is wearing thin’ means that you are losing your patience.  The most important part of this phrase is ‘wearing thin’.  This is an allusion to clothes being destroyed.  Wearing thin or wearing out means that you have worn the clothes so long that the material is starting to get destroyed.  Over time it will wear out and no long be useful.  Figuratively, ‘wearing thin’ means that something is becoming less useful, convincing, or acceptable.

Example:  That joke was funny the first three times.  Now, it is wearing thin. 

A synonymous phrase is “my patience is running thin.”  Personally, I am more likely to use this phrase, but Google Ngram shows that wearing thin is far more common.  What makes your patience wear thin?

See Also:  Running out of steam,  Running like a well-oiled machine, An elephant never forgets

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Reference:
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-us-canada-58510013