tear-off

American  

[tair-awf, -of] / ˈtɛərˌɔf, -ˌɒf /

adjective

1. designed to be easily removed by tearing, usually along a perforated line.

   a sales letter with a tear-off order blank.

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tear off British  

/ tɛə /

verb

1. (tr) to separate by tearing

2. (intr, adverb) to rush away; hurry

3. (tr, adverb) to produce in a hurry; do quickly and carelessly

   to tear off a letter

4. informal  to reprimand or rebuke someone forcibly

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adjective

1. (of paper, etc) produced in a roll or block and marked with perforations so that one section at a time can be torn off

tear off Idioms  

1. Produce hurriedly and casually, as in He tore off a poem a day for an entire month .

2. Leave in a hurry, as in She tore off to the store because it was about to close . [c. 1900]

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Etymology

Origin of tear-off

First recorded in 1885–90; adj., noun use of verb phrase tear off

Example Sentences

"My tear-off has gone in the brake duct," says the reigning world champion.

From BBC

But as Vasseur also said, "sometimes the gap between Max and Checo is big", and in this case from mid-race Perez had a visor tear-off caught in his car's floor that disrupted the underbody airflow and cost about 0.2 seconds a lap.

From BBC

For example, one poster said “If you are mad, think of positive thoughts”, and had tear-off strips reminding people to “Be happy”.

From NewsForKids.net

Sainz, whose race was disrupted early on by a forced early pit stop when a visor tear-off got caught in a rear brake duct, pitted out of the way, and Hamilton caught and passed Perez with 26 laps to go.

From BBC

The misprint on ballots that are being sent out to voters in Pueblo County was on a tear-off tab and does not effect the “legal validity” or accuracy of the rest of the ballot, Secretary of State Jena Griswold’s office said in a news release Monday.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• disassemble
• disengage
• disentangle
• dissociate
• isolate
• segregate
• separate
• sever