abrade

[uh-breyd]

verb (used with or without object)

abraded, abrading 

1. to wear off or down by scraping or rubbing.

2. to scrape off.

abrade

/ əˈbreɪd /

verb

1. (tr) to scrape away or wear down by friction; erode

Other Word Forms

• abradant noun
• abrader noun
• abradable adjective
• unabraded adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of abrade¹

1670–80; < Latin abrādere, equivalent to ab- ab- + rādere to scrape

Word History and Origins

Origin of abrade¹

C17: from Latin abrādere to scrape away, from _ab- ¹ + rādere to scrape

Example Sentences

It is only then, once you are still, that a now low, whipping wind, riddled with sand begins pricking and abrading your skin and collecting in the pages of your novel; it is intolerable.

From Salon

Its nine stories concern the complicated Bengali families in India and America, and Lahiri’s elegant, observant prose is constantly alert to the ways that lore and folkways shape or abrade relationships.

From Los Angeles Times

They abraded the rocks, revealing fresh surfaces that contain distinct rounded carbonate grains, a sign of settling in a lakefront.

From Science Magazine

In other words, they investigated questions such as: What happens when these materials are abraded or burnt?

From Science Daily

One recent study suggests that many particles enter the water when you repeatedly open or close the cap, and tiny bits abrade.

From Science Daily