careworn

/ˈkɛːwɔːn/

//ˈkɛːwɔːn// adj

"careworn" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“careworn” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
8
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Worn down by cares: showing the signs of long-term stress, tired and haggard due to prolonged worry.

Corpus desk

Index EN-careworn · careworn · English

careworn · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "C" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for careworn
PropertyValue
Headwordcareworn
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈkɛːwɔːn/
Letters8
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “careworn” in English

carewornsits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

careworn is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈkɛːwɔːn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Worn down by cares: showing the signs of long-term stress, tired and haggard due to prolonged worry.".

careworn has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From care (“sorrow, worry”) + worn. The correct English form is careworn, spelled C-A-R-E-W-O-R-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Worn down by cares: showing the signs of long-term stress, tired and haggard due to prolonged worry.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how careworn appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The weeks of working hard to look after his sick family left him looking careworn.
  2. At length the long-expected knock was heard. She hurried to the door, and met her husband; a man whose face was care-worn and depressed, though he was young. There was a remarkable expression in it now; a kind of serious delight of which he felt ashamed, and which he struggled to repress.

Etymology

From care (“sorrow, worry”) + worn.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "careworn"?
"careworn" is spelled C-A-R-E-W-O-R-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkɛːwɔːn/.
What does "careworn" mean?
As an adjective, "careworn" means: Worn down by cares: showing the signs of long-term stress, tired and haggard due to prolonged worry.
How do you pronounce "careworn"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "careworn" is /ˈkɛːwɔːn/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "careworn"?
From care (“sorrow, worry”) + worn. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list