Language Research

tear · verb I or T

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tear

B1 to pull something so that it comes apart or breaks, or to become damaged like this

Dictionary examples:

I tore my skirt on the chair as I stood up.

You have to be very careful with books this old because the paper tends to tear very easily.

A couple of pages had been torn out of the book.

Learner example:

Although it's quite expensive, the clothes that I buy from there will not tear easily. (Preliminary English Test; B1; Malay)

tear sth out of/off/down, etc.

C1 to remove something by pulling it quickly and violently

Dictionary example:

She tore his picture off the wall.

Learner example:

Inside, she felt that (part of) her life had been torn out, as one would tear out a page from a book. (Certificate of Proficiency in English; C2; Arabic)

(be) torn between sth and sth

C2 to be unable to decide between two choices

Dictionary example:

I'm torn between the apple pie and the chocolate mousse.

Learner example:

As a conse[q]uence, we find ourselves torn between what we want to eat and what we feel we should be eating. (Certificate of Proficiency in English; C2; Spanish)

tear apart sth or tear sth apart (DESTROY)

C2 to destroy something that was united, such as a country, family or political party

Dictionary example:

The political situation threatened to tear the country apart.

Learner example:

Angola has been torn apart by a 15 year long civil war and is now one of the poorest countries in the world. (Certificate of Proficiency in English; C2; Danish)

tear apart sth or tear sth apart (CRITICIZE)

C2 to criticize something very strongly

Dictionary example:

His ideas were torn apart at the meeting.

Learner example:

Nevertheless what I am saying was torn apart by an American [piece of] research giving a complete[ly] different version to mine. (Certificate of Proficiency in English; C2; Spanish)

tear down sth or tear sth down ()

C2 to destroy a building or other structure because it is not being used or it is not wanted any more

Dictionary example:

They're going to tear down the old hospital and build a block of offices there.

Learner example:

Their old school had been torn down due to its unpopularity. (Certificate of Proficiency in English; C2; Japanese)

tear up sth or tear sth up

C1 to tear paper into a lot of small pieces

Dictionary example:

He tore the letter up and threw it away.

Learner example:

She felt so humiliated and deceived that she tore up all his letters and put his photo in the drawer so that she would not keep thinking of him everytime she looked in that direction. (Certificate of Proficiency in English; C2; Catalan)