to pull apart or in pieces by force, esp. so as to leave ragged or irregular edges.

to pull or snatch violently; wrench away with force

to tear wrappings from a package; to tear a book from someone's hands.

to distress greatly

anguish that tears the heart.

to divide or disrupt

a country torn by civil war.

to wound or injure by or as if by rending; lacerate.

to produce or effect by rending

to tear a hole in one's coat.

to remove by force or effort

to be unable to tear oneself from a place.

to become torn.

to make a tear or rent.

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.

the act of tearing.

a rent or fissure.

a rage or passion; violent flurry or outburst.

Informal . a spree. ?

tear at,

to pluck violently at; attempt to tear

She tore at the bandages until they loosened.

to distress; afflict

remorse that tears at one's soul.

tear down,

to pull down; destroy; demolish.

to disparage or discredit

to tear down one's friends behind their backs.

tear into, Informal .

to attack impulsively and heedlessly

He tore into the food with a will.

to attack verbally

She tore into him for being late for dinner.

tear off, Slang . to perform or do, esp. rapidly or casually

to tear off a poem; to tear off a set of tennis.

tear up,

to tear into small shreds

He tore up the drawings because she had criticized them.

to cancel or annul

to tear up a contract.

tear it

Slang . to ruin all hope; spoil everything.

tear one's hair, to tug at one's hair, as with anger or sorrow. Also

tear one's hair out.

verb

annihilate , bulldoze , crush , decimate , devastate , devour , dilapidate , disassemble , dismantle , flatten , knock down , level , obliterate , pulverize , ruin , smash , take apart , total * , trash * , wipe off the map , wreck , tear