tearing
1 Americanadjective
adjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- tearingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of tearing1
First recorded in 1600–10; tear 2 + -ing 2
Origin of tearing1
before 1000; Old English tæherende (not recorded in ME); tear 1, -ing 2
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.
It was a year that knocked me flat, tearing me apart from so many things that once anchored me, setting me afloat in a sea of guilt and despair and ultimate uncertainty.
From Los Angeles Times
New technology doesn’t merely seep into the economy, eventually it grows into a Category 5 storm and starts tearing up trailer parks in its path.
He sent a photo of a hose, texting: “Hose lay leaks are tearing up small bits of the trail.”
From Los Angeles Times
In one episode, you choose to cover a brick wall instead of tearing it down and building a new one.
From Los Angeles Times
This past year, she was fresh out of a relationship when the holiday rolled around and she found herself tearing up during scenes of Snoopy making Valentine’s crafts for his friends.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
