tear gas
noun
a gas that makes the eyes smart and water, thus producing a temporary blindness, used in modern warfare, to quell riots, etc.
Showing results for tear gas.
Search instead for
teargases.
tear gas
1 American
[teer]
/ tɪər /
noun
tear-gas
2
American
[teer-gas]
/ ˈtɪərˌgæs /
verb (used with object)
tear-gassed,
tear-gassing
tear gas
British
/ tɪə /
noun
Etymology
Origin of tear gas1
First recorded in 1915–20
Origin of tear-gas2
First recorded in 1945–50
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:
In Paris, police used tear gas to try to prevent students from blocking access to the Helene-Boucher high school, an AFP reporter said.
From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2026
Police fired tear gas to disperse about 150 people protesting in the southeastern city of Lyon, in an area banned to all demonstrations, an AFP journalist saw.
From Barron's ● Oct. 24, 2026
"There were around 150 of us, mostly secondary school and university students. Then the tear gas came almost immediately. You could barely see anything in the street," said one protester in France's third-largest city.
From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026
Such “riotous situations” necessitated the use of tear gas against crowds, he said, something the department hadn’t done in decades.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
I back away, right into Garrett, whose eyes have teared up, and it has nothing to do with the tear gas.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
Apart from a few tear-gas skirmishes, the demonstrations ended peacefully.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
Officials said they had seized three tear-gas canisters and a blank rifle round during their searches of his home and office.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2025
News outlets around the world converged on Waco as the raid turned into a weeks-long standoff that ended on April 19, 1993, when federal agents launched a tear-gas attack to force out the Branch Davidians.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 19, 2023
Riddle, as well as a San Diego pediatrician I consulted, said that the treatment for tear-gas exposure is the same for pretty much anybody.
From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2020
The gun rack, set between two of the eight windows, held a Remington shotgun, a Colt AR-15 assault rifle, a tear-gas gun, and many rounds of ammunition.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
I have never dropped bombs or tear-gassed anyone.
From Salon ● Feb. 13, 2026
During the 2019 pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, Mr Lai would join the tear-gassed crowds and listen to protesters before returning to the newsroom to direct coverage.
From BBC ● Dec. 18, 2023
Mayor Ted Wheeler sided with protesters, at one point standing alongside black-clad demonstrators as they were tear-gassed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 10, 2023
While most of the gatherings were peaceful, French police tear-gassed protesters Sunday as they attempted to march on the Iranian Embassy in Paris.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 30, 2022
Thackeray reminisced at length about being tear-gassed blind in the November 1969 antiwar protests in Washington Circle, covering them for her college paper.
From The Hacker Crackdown, law and disorder on the electronic frontier by Bruce Sterling
“I actually think we could be promoting COVID-19 by tear-gassing protesters,” said Balmes.
From Scientific American ● Jun. 8, 2020
She oversaw punitive operations along the southern border that included the tear-gassing of hundreds of desperate would-be refugees near the San Ysidro border crossing.
From Slate ● Apr. 9, 2019
State Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal, who represents Ferguson and live-tweeted her tear-gassing by police, is one of 10 Democrats outnumbered by 24 Republicans.
From Slate ● Aug. 15, 2014
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
