Plumb Wore Out
"Plumb wore out" is Appalachian and Southern talk for being completely exhausted. The "plumb" means "entirely" or "utterly," and "wore out" is the hillbilly way of saying worn out.
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Hillbilly Dude Says...
No doubt you'll still hear plumb wore out around here. I've heard it all my life - and used it myself. Hillbilly Dude Says...
No doubt you'll still hear plumb wore out around here. I've heard it all my life - and used it myself. Pronunciation
[PLUM wor out]
Meaning & Usage
- Completely exhausted (saying)
Mae:
You look plumb wore out.
You look plumb wore out.
Earl:
Been splittin’ wood all afternoon.
Been splittin’ wood all afternoon.variations: plum wore out, completely tired, exhausted, tuckered out, dog-tired, zonked out, wore slap out, beat to death
★ "Plumb" here doesn’t mean the fruit - it’s from the word meaning "completely." Pair it with "wore out" and you’ve got a hillbilly way of saying "dead tired." ★
Origin and Etymology
From Middle English *plum(b)*, meaning exact or complete. The phrase "plumb wore out" spread in the South and Appalachia as a vivid way of stressing exhaustion.
Usage Notes
Still common in Appalachian and Southern speech. Often swapped with "plum tuckered out" or "wore slap out." Both "plumb" and "plum" spellings show up, depending on who’s writing it down.
Say It Like a Southerner
Said flat: "plum wore out" - with "wore" often stretched: "plum worrrrr out."
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How to Cite This Page
- APA (7th edition)The Hillbilly Dude. (2025, August 27). Plumb Wore Out. HillbillySlang.com. https://www.hillbillyslang.com/sayings/plumb-wore-out/
- MLA (9th edition)"The Hillbilly Dude." "Plumb Wore Out." HillbillySlang.com, 27 Aug. 2025, https://www.hillbillyslang.com/sayings/plumb-wore-out/.
- Chicago (17th edition)The Hillbilly Dude. "Plumb Wore Out." HillbillySlang.com. August 27, 2025. https://www.hillbillyslang.com/sayings/plumb-wore-out/.
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