Warn or worn?
warn is a verb meaning “To make (someone) aware of impending danger, evil, etc”; worn is an adjective meaning “Damaged and shabby as a result of much use”. Use warn as a verb and worn as an adjective. They sound the same (/wɔːn/). In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) worn is about 1.7 times as common as warn.
What is the difference between warn and worn?
| warn | worn | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | verb | adjective, verb |
| Meaning | To make (someone) aware of impending danger, evil, etc To notify or inform (someone, about something) | Damaged and shabby as a result of much use Worn out; exhausted |
| Example | We waved a flag to warn the oncoming traffic about the accident | none recorded |
| Forms | warns, warning, warned | none |
| Pronunciation | /wɔːn/ /woːn/ /woɹn/ | /wɔːn/ /woːn/ /woɹn/ |
| In writing | 10 times per million words | 18 times per million words |
Sources: warn and worn in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of warn and worn
warn
- 1
To make (someone) aware of impending danger, evil, etc
We waved a flag to warn the oncoming traffic about the accident
- 2
To notify or inform (someone, about something)
I warned him he'd be getting a huge box of birthday presents from me
- 3
To summon (someone) to or inform of a formal meeting or duty
The sheriff warned her to appear in court
- 4
To caution or admonish (someone) against unwise or unacceptable behaviour
He was warned against crossing the railway tracks at night
- 5
To advise or order to go or stay away
A sign warns trespassers off/away from the site
- 6
To give warning
worn
- 1
Damaged and shabby as a result of much use
- 2
Worn out; exhausted
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, warn or worn?
warn appears 10 times per million words; worn 18 times per million words.
warn 10 times per million wordsworn 18 times per million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How many people search warn vs worn?
“warn vs worn” is searched about 50 times a month on Google and 10 on Bing in the United States. Google counts close variants of a query together (“worn vs warn”, “warn or worn”).
Sources: Google Ads keyword data through DataForSEO and Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, the average month from September 2025 to August 2026.