# I'm beat, flat, worn out, tired, ... Tired in AE/BE?



## comsci

Do you say "*I'm beat*!" to denote that one's "flat/worn out"? What are some other ways to express "I'm extremely tired"? Just want to know what's idiomatic that's all.


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## renegade angel

"I'm stuffed"

"I'm rooted"

"I'm exhausted"

"I'm buggered" (very Australian =p)


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## comsci

renegade angel said:


> "I'm stuffed"
> 
> I thought when you say "I'm stuffed", it means you're full/replete with food.
> 
> "I'm exhausted" is well understood, not "rooted" or "buggered".  Can you explain a bit more?


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## JamesM

There are many, many expressions for this.    It must be because it's such a common experience.  Here are a few off the top of my head:

"bushed", "dead-tired", "dog-tired", "spent", "whacked", "dead on my feet", "running on empty", "running on fumes"


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## comsci

Wow..that many eh?  Thanks JamesM, I guess they don't teach you those in grammar or ESL books. Yikes!! That's what we're all here for. 

By the way, do you say "someone who's sleeping like a log" to refer to someone who's in deep sleep?


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## la reine victoria

"Dead beat" and "knackered" come to mind.  Also "shattered".





LRV


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## renegade angel

comsci said:


> renegade angel said:
> 
> 
> 
> "I'm stuffed"
> 
> I thought when you say "I'm stuffed", it means you're full/replete with food.
> 
> "I'm exhausted" is well understood, not "rooted" or "buggered".  Can you explain a bit more?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Yep, "I'm stuffed" can refer to food too, you would understand what it meant by the context in which it was said.
> 
> "rooted" and "buggered" are common colloquial terms used here in Australia.
Click to expand...


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## JamesM

comsci said:


> Wow..that many eh?  Thanks JamesM, I guess they don't teach you those in grammar or ESL books. Yikes!! That's what we're all here for.
> 
> By the way, do you say "someone who's sleeping like a log" to refer to someone who's in deep sleep?


 
Yes. You can also say "sleeps like a baby" or "sleeps like the dead".

There are dozens of expressions for "tired."  Now you have my head churning on that. 

A few more:  "bone-tired", "bone-weary", and "tired to the bone".  I'll see if I can find a collection of them out there in the ether somewhere.


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## renegade angel

"I'm knackered"


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## comsci

la reine victoria said:


> "Dead beat" and "knackered" come to mind. Also "shattered".
> 
> Thank you Your Majesty, to me it seems that "shattered", "whacked", "dead beat", "beat", "dead" all have to do with one's tiredness.


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## comsci

JamesM said:


> Yes. You can also say "sleeps like a baby" or "sleeps like the dead".
> 
> There are dozens of expressions for "tired." Now you have my head churning on that.
> 
> A few more: "bone-tired", "bone-weary", and "tired to the bone". I'll see if I can find a collection of them out there in the ether somewhere.


 
Thank you again JamesM, you've been so helpful and nice. As I understand the term "to the bone" or "bone", it refers to "in great extent/depth/degree" if I'm not mistaken.


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## la reine victoria

comsci said:


> la reine victoria said:
> 
> 
> 
> "Dead beat" and "knackered" come to mind. Also "shattered".
> 
> Thank you Your Majesty, to me it seems that "shattered", "whacked", "dead beat", "beat", "dead" all have to do with one's tiredness.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Hiya Comsci.
> 
> Yes indeed.    "Fit to drop" is another idiom we use over here.
> 
> 
> 
> LRV
Click to expand...


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## comsci

Thank you all as your input attested enlightening.


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## sambistapt

Hello amigos!

How do I say this expression: I´m very tired in Britain and in the United states, including slangs, terms in use or even outdated? I only know the word: exhausted that could replace it.

Thanks in advance,

Sam


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## Bobzinha

beat
UK - dead beat

you can say "my long day of work has finished me off".....

let's wait for more...


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## GreenWhiteBlue

Dead tired
wiped out
beat
wrung out
knocked out
dead on one's feet
dragging

EDIT - note that these are terms that might be used in AE.  Since most speakers of AE would have no idea what "knackered" meant (see below), I will likewise not claim that speakers of BE will know any or all of the terms above, although I suspect that they do.


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## sdgraham

Knackered is common in BE.


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## jucami

An American term for "tired" that I always thought was funny is "pooped."

What a long day! Boy, am I pooped!


We can also say "I'm worn out."


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## nzfauna

Buggered.
Fucked.


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## MarcB

Bobzinha said:


> beat
> UK - dead beat
> 
> you can say "my long day of work has finished me off".....
> 
> let's wait for more...



As post 3 shows beat is used in AE. Dead beat has a completely different meaning, one who doesn't pay(money) his obligations.


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## icecreamsoldier

nzfauna said:


> Buggered.
> Fucked.


Fucked = screwed, in a bind, etc; I would never use it to mean very tired in NZ English.
That said, many people use swear words for anything and everything - just saying it's not standard usage.


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## Dimcl

"Bagged" is very popular in my world.


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## audiolaik

Hello,

I suggest the word _shattered_.


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## Dimcl

audiolaik said:


> Hello,
> 
> I suggest the word _shattered_.


 
Does this mean "very tired" in your neighbourhood, Audiolaik?


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## icecreamsoldier

Shattered is very common, meaning very tired (physically/sleepy).
When physically tired such as after an exhausting run, I often say I'm really _wasted/butchered_. Careful about using _wasted_ though, people might think you mean that you're _on drugs_.


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## Dimcl

icecreamsoldier said:


> Shattered is very common, meaning very tired (physically/sleepy)


 
That's interesting because it's a synonym that I've never heard of for being very tired.  I've heard all of the others but not this one.  Live and learn!


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## cfu507

nzfauna said:


> Fucked.


 
Hey, some of us are still children 

How about: exhausted. Don't you say it?


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## Loob

Bobzinha said:


> UK - dead beat


I don't think we use "dead beat" for tired in BrE.  



icecreamsoldier said:


> Shattered is very common, meaning very tired (physically/sleepy)


 
I agree, "shattered" is fine, and very common in BrE.  I see it as a more polite version of "knackered", which is what I'd usually say.



cfu507 said:


> How about: exhausted. Don't you say it?


Yes, we do, cfu


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## sound shift

We also have some expressions for this in BE. If someone says "You're looking tired", you could respond with _You could knock me down with a feather_.

When my mother felt very tired she sometimes said _I couldn't knock the skin off a rice pudding_, but that was some years ago; these days it is not heard often.


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## nichec

icecreamsoldier said:


> Fucked = screwed, in a bind, etc; I would never use it to mean very tired in NZ English.
> That said, many people use swear words for anything and everything - just saying it's not standard usage.


 
Well, if someone says that he/she is fucked, I would think that he/she is toast, not tired. (AE)


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## Loob

sound shift said:


> We also have some expressions for this in BE. If someone says "You're looking tired", you could respond with _You could knock me down with a feather_.


That's interesting!  I use "knock me down with a feather" (especially in the phrase "you could have knocked me down with a feather") with the meaning "be astonished".


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## nichec

icecreamsoldier said:


> Shattered is very common, meaning very tired (physically/sleepy).
> When physically tired such as after an exhausting run, I often say I'm really _wasted/butchered_. Careful about using _wasted_ though, people might think you mean that you're _on drugs_.


 
Your "wasted" reminds me of another similar word for tired "spent".

You can always say "I am spent".

Oh, another one "worn-out".


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## sound shift

Loob said:


> That's interesting!  I use "knock me down with a feather" (especially in the phrase "you could have knocked me down with a feather") with the meaning "be astonished".



To be honest, I think you're right, Loob. I'm not really awake yet.


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## audiolaik

Dimcl said:


> Does this mean "very tired" in your neighbourhood, Audiolaik?



I wouldn't say _in my neighbourhood_ because I live in Poland!
I picked it up from my ex-teacher, a  Brit.


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## cfu507

nichec said:


> Well, if someone says that he/she is fucked, I would think that he/she is toast, not tired. (AE)


 
Me too, I'm not a native speaker, but I always heared "I'm fucked" and "I'm screwed" when someone wanted to say "I'm in big trubles".


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## audiolaik

Hello,

What about the expression _run oneself down? _


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## Pticru

my two cents: bushed and whacked were mentioned, but not "bush-whacked"!


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## audiolaik

Pticru said:


> my two cents: bushed and whacked were mentioned, but not "bush-whacked"!


 
Hello,

In Australian English, as far as I remember, the word _bushed _means the state of being lost!


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## ewie

_I'm feeling a bit run down_ ~ I'm feeling tired and lacking in energy, maybe a bit under the weather, perhaps a bit depressed with it.


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## audiolaik

ewie said:


> _I'm feeling a bit run down_ ~ I'm feeling tired and lacking in energy, maybe a bit under the weather, perhaps a bit depressed with it.


 
Hello, 

Thanks for your confirmation, Ewie!


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## Pticru

oops, sorry, maybe "bush-whacked" means just "ambushed" (as opposed to "am_bushed"). My mistake. Sounded right though...


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## gasman

I'm done, is another


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## ewie

gasman said:


> I'm done, is another


Or _done in_ (though that can also mean _murdered_ in BE)


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## Broccolicious

Have we had 'wiped out' yet?


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## ewie

Broccolicious said:


> Have we had 'wiped out' yet?


Yeah, we had that in #16, Brocco
Have we had _knacked_ though?  I hear that quite a lot ~ kind of a compromise between _knocked out_ and _knackered._


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## Egoexpress

What about "lethargic"?


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## Broccolicious

Knacked?! That must be a Northern one!


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## Loob

Broccolicious said:


> Knacked?! That must be a Northern one!


Yup - that's a new one on me...


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## Broccolicious

Egoexpress - 'lethargic' has more of a sense of not being alert, having no energy, not moving very fast. A lethargic person needn't be tired necessarily - they might just not be interested in what's going on. 

For example, I came out of a very long and dull meeting today feeling lethargic, but I wasn't tired - just bored and in need of stimulation!


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## ewie

Broccolicious said:


> Knacked?! That must be a Northern one!


'Appen so, Brocco.
Oh and there's _cream-crackered_ (though I'm not a fan of rhyming slang).


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## gasman

That's it, "I'm done"


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## Broccolicious

Erm... 'shagged out'? Not to be used in polite conversation!


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## Cathy Rose

AE speakers do not use "buggered" for tired.  Sometimes, although rarely, you may hear someone use it to refer to the fact that they are in some kind of trouble. Same goes for "f-cked."

"I called in sick yesterday and then saw my boss at the mall.  Boy, am i buggered/f-cked/up shit's creek without a paddle."


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## katie_here

Dimcl said:


> Does this mean "very tired" in your neighbourhood, Audiolaik?


 
It means very tired in my neighbourhood!!   It's a word I use frequently, as I'm always shattered when I come home from work. 


Knackered is a good one, but I tend to use that for something that is beyond repair, like when the vacuum cleaner breaks.  Its knackered.  (I used to hear the expression Knackers yard where they would take old horses to put them down). 

Most of the words I know have already been said.


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## ewie

Have _you_ heard 'knacked', Katie? (post #45)


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## katie_here

No, never.  Whacked but not knacked!.


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## Pedro y La Torre

I'm shattered is generally what I use when I'm very tired.


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## Jocaste

You can also say "_I'm burned-out_", when you're almost about to die


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## tonguingaround

zonked out


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## natkretep

Broccolicious said:


> Erm... 'shagged out'? Not to be used in polite conversation!


That is interesting, because it is used in Singapore. See: 
*Best of Singlish Words and Phrases*


> “Shag” is considered an offensive slang for sexual intercourse in British context, whereas in Singapore the word is being used without containing any sexual meaning. Many, especially military personnel, like to use “shag” or “shagged out” to express extreme fatigue.


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## GreenWhiteBlue

"I'm shattered" would mean nothing in American English, and most speakers of American English would not recognize this as a statement that meant "I am physically tired or exhausted." If a speaker of AE were to interpret the word "shattered" at all, it would probably be understood to mean "emotionally upset; emotionally prostrate", as in "_I was *shattered *by my brother's_ _death_."


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## sound shift

Here's one that we haven't had yet (I think).


> *all in,* _Northern and Western U.S._ very tired;
> exhausted:We were all in at the end of the day.


(WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English)


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## andrewg927

There are a lot of good suggestions and I only read a few responses (there are too many) but I like “pooped” something I use myself. I saw “shattered” but I never use it for tired. “Wasted” is a word I frequently use for drunk people.


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## andrewg927

sound shift said:


> Here's one that we haven't had yet (I think).
> (WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English)



I hear it sometimes.


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## andrewg927

Cathy Rose said:


> AE speakers do not use "buggered" for tired.  Sometimes, although rarely, you may hear someone use it to refer to the fact that they are in some kind of trouble. Same goes for "f-cked."
> 
> "I called in sick yesterday and then saw my boss at the mall.  Boy, am i buggered/f-cked/up shit's creek without a paddle."



Bugger is a word I hear very frequently from people from Britain.


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## Pedro y La Torre

I'm not sure how frequent it is nowadays. It sounds very dated to me.


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## heypresto

Bugger is heard a lot in the UK. It can be used in various contexts, but I don't think it's used in this context very often.


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## tonguingaround

Also I am wiped (out)


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## EdisonBhola

Loob said:


> I don't think we use "dead beat" for tired in BrE.
> 
> 
> 
> I agree, "shattered" is fine, and very common in BrE.  I see it as a more polite version of "knackered", which is what I'd usually say.
> 
> 
> Yes, we do, cfu


So using "knackered" is rude?


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## EdisonBhola

nichec said:


> Your "wasted" reminds me of another similar word for tired "spent".
> 
> You can always say "I am spent".
> 
> Oh, another one "worn-out".


Is "spent" used in everyday speech, or mostly in classics novels?


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## velisarius

EdisonBhola said:


> Is "spent" used in everyday speech, or mostly in classics novels?



"I am spent" is a phrase you are more likely to find in a work of literature. You also see phrases such as "her energy was spent". I don't hear people using this adjective in everyday speech.




EdisonBhola said:


> So using "knackered" is rude?


 It's rather vulgar. You can use it informally with people who know you are not a vulgar person.


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## ewie

Pedro y La Torre said:


> I'm not sure how frequent it is nowadays. It sounds very dated to me.


I use _bugger(ed)_ at least 247 times a day ...


heypresto said:


> Bugger is heard a lot in the UK. It can be used in various contexts, but I don't think it's used in this context very often.


... including in the sense 'knackered'

[In the meantime, Anonymous Lexicographer at UrbanDictionary defines _knacked_ [##45, 55] as "When you are so knackered you don't even have the strength to say 'knackered' and can only go as far as 'knacked'."]


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## natkretep

Hmm, I must have a higher tolerance of 'knackered' - to me, it just sounds informal rather than potentially offensive.


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## velisarius

It sounds a bit unladylike to me, nat. (Not that I have any pretensions of being a "lady".)

Edit: "vulgar" in this sense:


> marked by lack of taste, culture, delicacy, manners, etc: vulgar behaviour, vulgar language


 (Collins Dictionary) "Offensive" is more strongly negative than "vulgar", and "offensive speech" might even be illegal nowadays.


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## ewie

natkretep said:


> Hmm, I must have a higher tolerance of 'knackered' - to me, it just sounds informal rather than potentially offensive.


Same here, Nat.  My acid test is "Does my mother say it?" ~ yes, she says _knackered_.


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## velisarius

I think maybe down in the south-east we ladies are rather more refined in speech, if not in behaviour - but yes, that too.


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## sound shift

ewie said:


> Same here, Nat.  My acid test is "Does my mother say it?" ~ yes, she says _knackered_.


Bet she doesn't say _knacked_, though.


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## ewie

No she doesn't, Mr S ... but I'm fairly sure I've heard her (in her more fanciful moments) saying something like _knick-knackered ... knick-knackeroo _... _knicky-knackered_ ... ... then again, I might be imagining the whole thing


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## andrewg927

EdisonBhola said:


> Is "spent" used in everyday speech, or mostly in classics novels?



Yes. It is used in everyday speech as well.


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## tonguingaround

Also I am *frazzled *or I am *bushed*


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## ewie

andrewg927 said:


> Yes. [_spent_] is used in everyday speech as well.


Not by me it isn't.  I don't believe I've ever used it to mean 'extremely tired', only to describe exhausted supplies etc. ... and even then only rarely


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## velisarius

(Old thread)

I may have used the phrase "a spent match" once or twice.


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## sound shift

"I'm flaked out."


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## kentix

Here are a couple of examples of using spent, taken from an ngram result.

_- He was spent_. He could barely keep his eyes open, as he watched Merion and Gunderton shiver and expand. They were soon wedged against the sides of the culvert, groaning and yelping with pain.

_- He was spent_, and he couldn't decide what he needed more, a shower or a nap. He thought for a moment about trying to get through to the Americans again, but he was too tired.


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## Pedro y La Torre

My mother (born in the mid-1950s) uses it quite a lot to mean 'very tired'. I don't really say it all that often but it wouldn't strike me as odd if i heard it in conversation.


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## Cagey

This thread was started a long time ago, when rules were looser. 
We no longer allow lists of synonyms. 
Instead we refer people to our 'Synonyms' function. 

To find synonyms, 
enter tired in the Dictionary search box at the top of this page. ​On the next page, click on the link below the search box --->  English synonyms​Clicking on a word in the list of synonyms will lead you in turn to a list of synonyms to that word. ​​This thread is closed. 
Cagey, 
moderator


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