tearaway

1 of 2

noun

tear·​away ˈter-ə-ˌwā How to pronounce tearaway (audio)
British
: a rebellious and unruly or reckless young person

tear away

2 of 2

verb

tore away; torn away; tearing away; tears away

transitive verb

: to remove (someone, such as oneself) reluctantly

Examples of tearaway in a Sentence

Noun a gang of teenage tearaways
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Folding cardboard kiosks in employee breakrooms with a tearaway pad to submit ideas to corporate. Elizabeth Baskin, Forbes, 4 Dec. 2024 Lululemon Women’s Tear-away Mid-rise Track Pants $128 $69 at Lululemon I was born in 1989 and fondly remember when tearaways were all the rage in the late ‘90s. Katie Jackson, Travel + Leisure, 28 Nov. 2024
Verb
Across the street, the gymnasium of a school lay in ruins, its roof and front wall torn away, leaving the interior exposed. Robert Shackelford, CNN, 17 Mar. 2025 Making the cut this way will prevent the branch from tearing away and ripping bark from the trunk. Beth Botts, Chicago Tribune, 22 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for tearaway

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1950, in the meaning defined above

Verb

circa 1699, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of tearaway was circa 1699

Browse Nearby Words

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Cite this Entry

“Tearaway.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tearaway. Accessed 28 Mar. 2025.

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