Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

tears

British  
/ tɪəz /

plural noun

  1. the clear salty solution secreted by the lacrimal glands that lubricates and cleanses the surface of the eyeball and inner surface of the eyelids

  2. a state of intense frustration (esp in the phrase bored to tears )

  3. weeping

  4. presented so as to be easily assimilated

    reading without tears
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
tears Idioms  

  1. see bore to death (tears); burst into (tears); crocodile tears. Also see under tear.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Her confidante immediately hastens off to write “The Tears of the Comet,” an allegorical tale that decorously recasts certain incidents from his stay.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026

The strait, whose name means Gate of Tears, leads to the Suez Canal and is one of the most important links for ships sailing between Asia and Europe.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

Tears streamed from the eyes of Uwde Sliman, a 40-year-old Ethiopian draped in a white shawl, as she came out of the church.

From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026

"I remember booking Tears for Fears and 11 people came," he says.

From BBC • Dec. 12, 2025

Tears sprang into Carmen’s eyes, and not only from the relief of seeing Rosie unhurt.

From "I Survived the Great Molasses Flood, 1919" by Lauren Tarshis

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.