To Wear Down

1. To cause (someone) physical or mental fatigue.

(sports) To make the opponent tired after using a strategy while conserving own energy to attack later.

He tried to wear down the bowlers before lunch so he could attack the bowlers after lunch.

2. To eventually persuade or defeat (someone) through persistent effort.

At first she refused to buy the kids sweets, but eventually they wore her down.

3. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see wear,‎ down.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:fatigue