Fatigue

weariness from bodily or mental exertion.
a cause of weariness; slow ordeal; exertion:
the fatigue of driving for many hours.
physiology. temporary diminution of the irritability or functioning of organs, tissues, or cells after excessive exertion or stimulation.
civil engineering. the weakening or breakdown of material subjected to stress, especially a repeated series of stresses.
also called fatigue duty. military.

labor of a generally nonmilitary kind done by soldiers, such as cleaning up an area, digging drainage ditches, or raking leaves.
the state of being engaged in such labor:
on fatigue.

fatigues, military, .
of or relating to fatigues or any clothing made to resemble them:
the guerrilla band wore fatigue pants and field jackets. she brought fatigue shorts to wear on the hike.
to weary with bodily or mental exertion; exhaust the strength of:
endless chatter fatigues me.
civil engineering. to subject (a material) to fatigue.
to become .
civil engineering. (of a material) to undergo fatigue.
a soldier’s uniform for fatigue duty.
contemporary examples

when it was his turn to speak he was dull and off-form, his eyes drooping with fatigue.
big dog and the whippet tina brown november 2, 2008

israelis who believe in peace must shake off their fatigue and cynicism and say: no.
savoring the afterglow of obama’s speech lara friedman march 20, 2013

fatigue feels heavy, like i am trudging through life with a 300-pound man on my back.
youtube’s sleep whisperers are a s-xy way to combat insomnia lizzie crocker may 2, 2014

then everyone bayed at her for tearing up in a moment of fatigue.
why hillary lashed out tina brown august 11, 2009

a recent publishers weekly article suggests a “level of fatigue” with the genre.
dog books: loving dogs and michael vick’s crimes reviewed elizabeth hess november 9, 2010

historical examples

that night, overcome by fatigue, strange as it may seem, we all slept soundly.
peter the whaler w.h.g. kingston

it was as if she found in sheer activity and fatigue a remedy for her uneasiness.
k mary roberts rinehart

they numbered seven hundred men, and were exhausted with hunger, thirst, and fatigue.
the gtakaml rya sra

renmark stepped into the light, and she saw his face was haggard with fatigue and anxiety.
in the midst of alarms robert barr

his father was dropping with fatigue, and might at any moment fall from the saddle.
the isle of unrest henry seton merriman

noun
physical or mental exhaustion due to exertion
a tiring activity or effort
(physiol) the temporary inability of an organ or part to respond to a stimulus because of overactivity
the progressive cracking of a material subjected to alternating stresses, esp vibrations
the temporary inability to respond to a situation or perform a function, because of overexposure or overactivity: comp-ssion fatigue

any of the mainly domestic duties performed by military personnel, esp as a punishment
(as modifier): fatigue duties

(pl) special clothing worn by military personnel to carry out such duties
verb -tigues, -tiguing, -tigued
to make or become weary or exhausted
to crack or break (a material or part) by inducing fluctuating stresses in it, or (of a metal or part) to become weakened or fail as a result of fluctuating stresses
n.

1660s, “that which causes weariness,” from french fatigue “weariness,” from fatiguer “to tire,” from latin fatigare, originally “to cause to break down,” later, “to weary, fatigue, tire out,” from pre-latin adj. -fati-agos “driving to the point of breakdown,” from old latin -fatis (of unknown origin, related to adv. affatim “sufficiently” and to fatisci “crack, split”) + root of agere “to drive” (see act (n.)). meaning “weariness from exertion” is from 1719.
v.

1690s, from french fatiguer (15c.), from fatigue (see fatigue (n.). earlier in same sense was fatigate (1530s). related: fatigued; fatiguing.

fatigue fa·tigue (fə-tēg’)
n.

physical or mental weariness resulting from exertion.

a sensation of boredom and l-ssitude due to absence of stimulation, to monotony, or to lack of interest in one’s surroundings.

the decreased capacity or complete inability of an organism, an organ, or a part to function normally because of excessive stimulation or prolonged exertion.