| Clue | Source | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Becomes threadbare | USA Today | 30 Jun 2021 |
| Skirmishes | Newsday | 13 Dec 2020 |
| Becomes tattered at the edges | Newsday | 29 Jul 2019 |
| Shows signs of wear | USA Today | 09 Jul 2019 |
| Shows signs of wear | ||
| Becomes ragged | ||
| Becomes tattered at the edges | Universal | 16 Dec 2017 |
| Becomes tattered at the edges | ||
| Ruckuses | Newsday | 21 Aug 2016 |
| Skirmishes | Wall Street Journal | 20 Jun 2016 |
| Gets ragged | Premier Sunday | 19 Jul 2015 |
| From recitation, expression gets worn out | The Telegraph Toughie | 09 Apr 2015 |
| Gets ragged | ||
| Wears at the edges | ||
| Starts to unravel | ||
| Begins to come undone | ||
| Wears at the edges | ||
| Wears at the edges | ||
| Tatters | ||
| Scuffles | ||
| Skirmishes | ||
| Skirmishes | ||
| Starts to unravel | ||
| Scuffles | ||
| Phrase homonym | ||
| Doesn't wear well | ||
| Battles | ||
| Shows wear, like an old rope | ||
| Unravels | ||
| Starts to wear | ||
| Ravels | ||
| Unravels | ||
| Gets worn a bit | ||
| Doesn't wear well | ||
| Becomes unraveled | ||
| Brawls | ||
| To-dos | ||
| Unravels | ||
| Starts to unravel | ||
| Ravels | ||
| Wears away by usage, as cloth | ||
| Shows wear | ||
| Gets frazzled | ||
| Melees | ||
| Ravels. | ||
| Wears by friction. | ||
| Wears into shreds. |