: a solid, liquid, or gaseous substance that on dispersion in the atmosphere irritates mucous membranes resulting especially in blinding of the eyes with tears and that is used chiefly (as by the police and the military) to disperse large crowds of people
variants
or tear gas
or less commonly teargas
tear-gassed or tear gassed also teargassed; tear-gassing or tear gassing also teargassing; tear-gases or tear gasses also teargasses
: to use tear gas on
The troops then tear-gassed the crowd of several hundred, mostly teenagers and young men, which scattered in great confusion, but re-formed later.—
Roger Daniels
Roger DanielsExamples of tear gas in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Mark R. Weaver, Newsweek, 4 Dec. 2024
The crisis has deepened since the Nov. 28 announcement that the government would freeze EU talks for four years, with thousands of pro-EU demonstrators facing off against police armed with tear gas and water cannon.
—Felix Light, The Christian Science Monitor, 2 Dec. 2024
Tom Burrows, The Athletic, 18 Apr. 2024
Quintero hid for two hours in a closet, listening to gunshots and what sounded like bombs — possibly grenades or tear-gas canisters.
—Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 9 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tear gas 
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
In Seoul, thousands of university students protested in the streets, demanding an end to martial law, only to be met with tear gas from riot police.
—Mark R. Weaver, Newsweek, 4 Dec. 2024
The crisis has deepened since the Nov. 28 announcement that the government would freeze EU talks for four years, with thousands of pro-EU demonstrators facing off against police armed with tear gas and water cannon.
—Felix Light, The Christian Science Monitor, 2 Dec. 2024
Verb
Many fans were tear-gassed by police officers and kick off was delayed by 30 minutes.
—Tom Burrows, The Athletic, 18 Apr. 2024
Quintero hid for two hours in a closet, listening to gunshots and what sounded like bombs — possibly grenades or tear-gas canisters.
—Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 9 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tear gas
Articles Related to tear gas
Dictionary Entries Near tear gas
Cite this Entry
“Tear gas.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tear%20gas. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
teargas
1 of 2 verb
tear·gas
ˈti(ə)r-ˌgas 
: to use tear gas on
tear gas
2 of 2 noun
: any of various substances that cause eye irritation and blind the eyes with tears when released into the air and that are used mostly to scatter mobs
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share