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How To Properly Use The Word “Jaded” In A Sentence

How To Properly Use The Word “Jaded” In A Sentence

You may have been called jaded a few times in your life and wondered what it meant. Basically, the person is telling you that you’ve done something so much that you no longer feel excited by it. Instead, you feel tired and thus you are jaded. This is a word and phrase that many people find themselves being confused by today.

However, simply put, the word jaded basically means that you’re weary, worn out, exhausted, and lack experience either due to age or due to experience. With this understanding in mind, you may now be wondering how to use jaded in a sentence.

How To Use “Jaded” In A Sentence

Jaded is an adjective (a word that’s used to describe a noun – a person, place, or thing). It’s typically used to describe someone who’s bored, cynical, or apathetic because they’ve been exposed to something for far too much. 

Many times it’s used to describe someone who has too many material riches; a person’ who’s been overindulged or has been exposed to life’s pleasures for way too long.

unenthusiastic girl looks away

Etymology Of The Word “Jaded”

The word jaded is derived from jade. When we think of the word jade we often think about a green stone. However, in the 1600s the word jade was given another, alternative meaning. Back then it was used to describe an old horse that was worn out. This was a horse who had little worth either because of its age, bloodline, condition, breed, training, or temperament. You can see an example of the word being used in this way in the 1386 rendition of The Nun’s Priest’s Tale by Chaucer. Herein Chaucer refers to a horse who was jaded because it was “foul and lene.”

Circa 1560 the word jade went on to be used to describe a woman who behaves either inappropriately or disrespectfully – someone who oftentimes had a lot of casual, sexual relationships. The word jaded was first recorded as a term referring to a woman (instead of referring to a horse) in the 1631 treatise which was entitled The English Gentlewoman. Rarely do we see this word being used in this way anymore but jaded is still quite frequently used as an adjective.

The word jade can also be used as a transitive verb (a verb that requires a direct object, a noun that receives the verb’s action). The noun jade simply gave way to the transitive verb “to jade.” An example of this lies in this sentence: Sally worked the horse so much and treated it so badly she jaded it. The use of the word jade as a verb dates back to 1615. Five years later, in 1620, the intransitive form (a verb that doesn’t require a direct object) of the verb made its first appearance.

While some will argue that the word jade originally comes from the Old Norse root “yaud” or “jalda” Icelandic (both terms meaning an old mare) according to the Oxford English Dictionary this isn’t true.

Defining The Word “Jaded”

There are actually several different definitions for the word jaded based on the way you choose to use it in a sentence. These include:

  • As an adjective it means worn out, wearied, dulled by surfeit (an excessive amount of something), satisfied, distrusting human sincerity, attempting to impress by putting up a hard exterior, dulled, satisfied by overindulgence
  • As a verb it means to make apathetic, insensitive, or embittered by experience; to tire or dull

Using Synonyms And Antonyms For The Word “Jaded”

Although jaded is still a fairly commonly used word, there are many synonyms that are also used in place of it today. These include:

  • Bored
  • Fatigued
  • Weary
  • Tired
  • Worn
  • Fed up

Knowing the synonyms of the word jaded will help you have a better grasp on what the word really means. You should also know the antonyms. While not as numerous, they’re equally important and include:

  • Absorbed
  • Interested
  • Energetic
  • Intrigued
  • Engaged
  • Rapt
  • Engrossed
  • Amused
  • Fresh
  • Unwearied

jaded girl sits in front of computer

Tips For Using The Word “Jaded” In A Sentence

You’ll find that it’s easier to use the word jaded in a sentence if you know what words most commonly precede and follow it, as well as what words are found in the same sentence. Some of the most frequent predecessors (words that come before) of the word jaded include:

  • A
  • Most
  • The
  • Their
  • And
  • Of
  • His
  • Our
  • Become
  • So

Some of the most frequently used successor (words that come afterwards) of the word jaded include:

  • And
  • Palate
  • Appetite
  • To
  • By
  • Nerves
  • Horse(s)
  • With

Of course, there are also some words that are frequently found in the same sentence with jaded. These include:

  • Cynical
  • Cynicism
  • Listener
  • Idealistic
  • Faded

Understanding The Difference Between The Word “Jaded” And The Word “Cynical”

Both the word jaded and the word cynical are adjectives (words that name a noun’s attribute). Remember, jaded means that you either don’t have or have lost interest because you’ve had one too many experiences with something. On the other hand, being cynical means that you believe people are insincere and only interested in themselves.

To get a better understanding of the difference between these two words’ meanings, it’s important to take a look at how they’re used in sentences.

I hope it isn’t very cynical not to confess obligations when there aren’t any benefits to doing so.: Here in this sentence the word cynical means that you’re skeptical of the other person’s motives and sincerity. You may even say that you’re jadedly distrustful of them.

Although he rarely talked, when he did it was merely to make a cynical remark.: In this sentence his actions are showing contempt for acceptable moral standards.

So there is a definite difference between these two words and thus they should be used at different times.

What it Means When Someone Says You’re Jaded

Sometimes someone may tell you that you’re jaded. When someone tells you this they’re telling you that they think you’re cynical, always see the negative in life, and don’t get excited about anything – even when good things happen. The reason why you may have grown jaded is because you’ve been in the same situation for too long (e.g. a bad job, a toxic relationship). Regardless of the situation, you’ve been in it for so long that now you can imagine having a positive experience so you go out of your way to pull everyone else down.

People become jaded when they grow insensitive to the pain or suffering they’re going through. This happens because it’s been seen too often in the past. Even here the word jaded is part of a negative statement.

Using “Jaded” As A Verb

Although we’ve been discussing how jaded is used as an adjective, it should be made known that the word can also be used as a verb. Here “to jade” means to tire or to make weary. It’s from this definition of the word jaded as a verb that we get the adjective jaded. There is also the past tense of the verb jade which is jaded.

An example of the word jaded as a verb is:

  • Your foolishness is beginning to jade me.

An example of the word jaded as a past verb is:

  • You’ve been acting foolish for so long that you’ve jaded me.

Examples Of Using “Jaded” in a Sentence

Now that we have a better understanding of how to use the word jaded in a sentence, here are some sentence examples for your consideration:

  • After spending about 24 hours on an airplane, Sally is a bit jaded and never wants to fly again.
  • Ever since I started working late every night I’ve grown increasingly more jaded by the thought of holding a managerial position in this company.
  • In a world that’s jaded by violence people have started to feel unsafe when leaving their homes.
  • My taste buds are a bit jaded since I’ve not eaten meat in a few weeks.
  • After having his heart broken numerous times, Jim was jaded for love.
  • After hearing my mother’s lecture I became so jaded that I locked myself in my bedroom for the rest of the night.
  • Many people have stopped watching TV because they’ve grown jaded by the amount of violence on every channel.
  • Many children are jaded by violence in the real world because they routinely play so many video games.
  • The media caused the celebrity to grow jaded after spending 30 years in the public eye.
  • Overworked, underpaid teachers can easily become jaded and miserable.

hands typing on keyboard

Conclusion

Now the next time you hear the word jaded used in a sentence you’ll understand what someone is trying to say. Even better, that someone may be you since you now know how to properly write a sentence using this word.