tear

Universal Words verb, noun-see also TEAR verb (tore ) damage 1 to damage sth by pulling it apart or into pieces or by cutting it on sth sharp; to become damaged in this way: [VN] I tore my jeans on the fence. * I tore a hole in my jeans. * He tore the letter in two. * a torn handkerchief * [VN-ADJ] I tore the package open. * I tore open the package. * [V] Careful-the fabric tears very easily. 2 [VN] ~ sth in sth to make a hole in sth by force: The blast tore a hole in the wall. remove from sth / sb 3 [VN+adv./prep.] to remove sth from sth else by pulling it roughly or violently: The storm nearly tore the roof off. * I tore another sheet from the pad. * He tore his clothes off (= took them off quickly and carelessly) and dived into the lake. 4 ~ yourself / sb (from sb/sth) to pull yourself/sb away by force from sb/sth that is holding you or them: [VN] She tore herself from his grasp. * [VN-ADJ] He tore himself free. injure muscle 5 [VN] to injure a muscle, etc. by stretching it too much: a torn ligament * She tore a calf muscle playing squash. move quickly 6 [V+adv./prep.] to move somewhere very quickly or in an excited way: He tore off down the street. * A truck tore past the gates. -torn 7 (in adjectives) very badly affected or damaged by sth: to bring peace to a strife-torn country * a strike-torn industry seealsoWAR-TORN IDIOMS tear sb/sth apart, to shreds, to bits, etc. to destroy or defeat sb/sth completely or criticize them or it severely: We tore the other team apart in the second half. * The critics tore his last movie to shreds. tear at your heart