tear
1 Americannoun
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a drop of the saline, watery fluid continually secreted by the lacrimal glands between the surface of the eye and the eyelid, serving to moisten and lubricate these parts and keep them clear of foreign particles.
- Synonyms:
- teardrop
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this fluid appearing in or flowing from the eye as the result of emotion, especially grief.
to shed tears.
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something resembling or suggesting a tear, as a drop of a liquid or a tearlike mass of a solid substance, especially having a spherical or globular shape at one end and tapering to a point at the other.
little tears of morning dew.
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Glassmaking. a decorative air bubble enclosed in a glass vessel; air bell.
verb (used without object)
idioms
verb (used with object)
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to pull apart or in pieces by force, especially so as to leave ragged or irregular edges.
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to pull or snatch violently; wrench away with force.
to tear wrappings from a package; to tear a book from someone's hands.
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to distress greatly.
anguish that tears the heart.
- Synonyms:
- afflict, shatter, crack, break (one's) heart
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to divide or disrupt.
a country torn by civil war.
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to wound or injure by or as if by rending; lacerate.
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to produce or effect by rending.
to tear a hole in one's coat.
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to remove by force or effort.
to be unable to tear oneself from a place.
verb (used without object)
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to become torn.
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to make a tear or rent.
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to move or behave with force, violent haste, or energy.
The wind tore through the trees; cars tearing up and down the highway; I was tearing around all afternoon trying to find sandals for the beach.
noun
verb phrase
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tear off to perform or do, especially rapidly or casually.
to tear off a poem; to tear off a set of tennis.
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tear into
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to attack impulsively and heedlessly.
He tore into the food with a will.
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to attack verbally.
She tore into him for being late for dinner.
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tear down
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to pull down; destroy; demolish.
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to disparage or discredit.
to tear down one's friends behind their backs.
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tear at
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to pluck violently at; attempt to tear.
She tore at the bandages until they loosened.
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to distress; afflict.
remorse that tears at one's soul.
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tear up
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to tear into small shreds.
He tore up the drawings because she had criticized them.
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to cancel or annul.
to tear up a contract.
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idioms
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tear it, to ruin all hope; spoil everything.
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tear one's hair, to manifest extreme anxiety, grief, anger, or frustration: Also tear one's hair out.
I'm so upset, I could just tear my hair out.
verb
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to cause (material, paper, etc) to come apart or (of material, etc) to come apart; rip
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(tr) to make (a hole or split) in (something)
to tear a hole in a dress
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to hurry or rush
to tear along the street
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(tr; usually foll by away or from) to remove or take by force
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to cause pain, distress, or anguish (to)
it tore at my heartstrings to see the starving child
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informal to be angry, frustrated, very worried, etc
noun
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a hole, cut, or split
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the act of tearing
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a great hurry; rush
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slang showing a sudden burst of energy
noun
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a drop of the secretion of the lacrimal glands See tears
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something shaped like a hanging drop
a tear of amber
Synonym Usage
Tear, rend, rip mean to pull apart. To tear is to split the fibers of something by pulling apart, usually so as to leave ragged or irregular edges: to tear open a letter. Rend implies force or violence in tearing apart or in pieces: to rend one's clothes in grief. Rip implies vigorous tearing asunder, especially along a seam or line: to rip the sleeves out of a coat.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of tear1
First recorded before 900; Middle English noun ter(e), Old English tēar, tēor, tehher, taeher; cognate with Old High German zahar, Old Norse tār, Gothic tagr, Greek dákry, Latin lacrima; verb derivative of the noun; see also lachrymal
Origin of tear2
First recorded before 900; Middle English verb teren, ter(e), tern, Old English teran “to tear, rend, bite, lacerate,” cognate with Dutch teren, Old High German zeran “to destroy,” German zehren “to consume,” Gothic ga-tairan “to tear, destroy,” Greek dérein “to flay, skin”
Explanation
When you tear something, you rip it apart. You might tear a hole in your jeans if you catch them on something sharp, or you might tear up that love letter you wrote to your crush. The verb tear often refers to pulling something apart or making a hole — and has a noun form that describes the result of those actions — but it can also describe quick movement. If you tear out of the parking lot, you’re driving very fast. When you use tear in these ways, pronounce it to rhyme with hair. Another word, tear — what you do or produce when you cry — is spelled the same but pronounced to rhyme with peer.
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.
See Examples For:
An aortic dissection is a tear in the main artery that carries blood to the heart.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
A dissection is when a tear occurs in the aorta’s inner lining, either in the ascending aorta or the descending one.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026
But all that is “ringing hollow” now, and not because of streaming and smoking bans: “They took away the welcome mat / Lady Liberty don’t look so good when there’s a tear in her gown.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
I’m literally probably going to tear up seeing her on stage.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
“I knew this was useless stuff. Let’s tear it up and sell it to the crows for nests.”
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
As you cook the salmon and vegetables, whether it’s on a cast-iron griddle or a hot grill, stay close so you can keep turning the skewers and brushing them with your homemade tare.
From New York Times ● Aug. 6, 2022
Brush both sides of each skewer with some of the reserved tare.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 24, 2019
Each bag includes the tare weight to ensure you pay only for what you are buying.
From Slate ● May 7, 2018
Plus, the sauce they’re served atop — a thick Japanese tare — is enhanced by the unctuous filling that spills out.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 9, 2017
Until Jade Dragon is no longer lonely and is reunited with at least one of her children, Fruitless Mountain will remain tare.
From "Where the Mountain Meets the Moon" by Grace Lin
It spread quickly, tearing through Bédar, leaving Malcolm, Annette and their friends having to make the quick decision to flee.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
Andrew Robare, a corps de ballet dancer since 2022, tore up the stage by tearing into the often cheeky choreographic details with confidence and sureness of footing and posture.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026
Instead of a caregiving crisis bringing families together out of shared love for an ailing parent, it’s tearing many of them apart.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
Their analysis suggests the event may represent an intermediate-mass black hole tearing apart and consuming a white dwarf star.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 26, 2026
She couldn’t see Ivan to know how he was doing, so she concentrated on tearing a hole in the side of the bag.
From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
Kobe Bryant’s sneakers from the game in which he tore his Achilles tendon — and hit two free throws before he left the court — fetched $660,000.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
However, Leonard tore his anterior cruciate ligament during that run and left L.A. and the NBA wondering “What if?” — the everlasting theme of Steve Ballmer’s ownership of the Clippers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
The 28 May fire tore through the upper floor of a dormitory containing 135 bunk beds and housing 202 students, forcing them to flee through a single doorway after the emergency exit failed to open.
From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026
Earth, Wind & Fire’s cheery, uplifting hits were at odds with the decadeslong internal strain that eventually tore the band apart.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026
“He tore up my Stevie James costume. That is pure hatred, Nic!” he huffs.
From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas
The more poetic among us might find a metaphor there; the major artery to Graham’s heart was literally torn in two.
From Salon ● Jul. 13, 2026
It may have also torn through the dashboard itself.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026
There is no torn metal or flying glass.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
Summit attendees were torn on whether the flattery that European leaders lavished the U.S. president with was genuine.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
The sofa is torn and the lamps badly need dusting, but there’s a familiar warmth, too.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
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.
