I. darn 1 /dɑːn $ dɑːrn/ BrE AmE ( also darn it/him/them etc ) interjection American English informal
used to show that you are annoyed or disappointed SYN damn :
Darn! I forgot my keys!
Darn it! I’ll have to do it all myself!
II. darn 2 BrE AmE ( also darned ) adjective spoken informal
1 . used to emphasize how bad, stupid, unfair etc someone or something is SYN damn :
The darn fool got lost on the way.
2 . a darn sight better/harder etc a lot better, harder etc SYN damn :
He’d earn a darn sight more money there.
—darn,
— darned adverb :
It was a darned good movie.
III. darn 3 BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[ Date: 1600-1700 ; Origin: Probably from French darner ]
to repair a hole in a piece of clothing by stitching wool over it:
Her cardigan had been darned at the elbows.
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THESAURUS
▪ repair to do some work on something that is damaged or not working properly, so that it is in good condition again:
The builders are coming to repair the roof.
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Have you had the washing machine repaired yet?
▪ fix especially American English to repair something:
I’m taking the car in to get it fixed.
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The chain on the bike needs fixing.
▪ mend especially British English to repair something that is damaged, torn, or not working:
I’ve found someone who’ll mend the fence.
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Can you mend this sweater for me?
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Fishermen sat mending their nets in the sunshine.
▪ service to check a vehicle or machine and repair it if necessary, especially regularly:
You should have your car serviced every six months.
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When was the last time we had the gas boiler serviced?
▪ renovate to repair an old building so that it looks in good condition again:
They bought an old house and renovated it themselves.
▪ restore to repair something old and valuable, especially a building, piece of furniture, painting etc, so that it looks the same as it did originally:
Many paintings were damaged in the fire but have now been restored.
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The hotel was restored to its original Victorian splendour in 1984.
▪ do up British English informal , fix up American English informal to repair an old building or vehicle, so that it looks in good condition again:
He does up old cars and sells them.
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A builder bought the house and fixed it up.
▪ patch something up to quickly repair something that has a hole in it, by putting a piece of material on it, especially temporarily:
They patched up the wall with bits of cement.
▪ darn to repair holes in clothes:
Are you any good at darning socks?
IV. darn 4 BrE AmE noun [countable]
a place where a hole in a piece of clothing has been repaired neatly with wool