Usure

noun, verb

noun, verb ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The process by which a metaphor inexorably loses its freshness, power, and imagery through overuse. uncountable

    "This movement involves a detour through metaphor: with the expropriation of the primitive meaning given to things, we fall into a metaphoric mode of understanding; in the course of human history and through the process of usure or wearing away of the figurative, and 'proper' meaning is restored; this new one is the old one effaced and carried to a higher conceptual power, now interiorized and spiritualized."

  2. 2
    An instance of degredation due to use; A sign of wear and tear. countable

    "If the cartilage is thick, there are fewer usures and less destruction of the bone."

Verb
  1. 1
    To commit usury. intransitive, obsolete

    "I turn no moneys in the public bank; Nor usure private."

  2. 2
    To cause to degenerate through usage.

    "The maternal tongue is irrevocably supplanted by a usured tongue, the language of the truck driver and of the maid in Andalusia."

Example

More examples

"I turn no moneys in the public bank; Nor usure private."

Etymology

Borrowed from French usure.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.