tear apart
phrasal verb
tore apart; torn apart; tearing apart; tears apart
1
: to completely destroy (something) by tearing it into pieces
I couldn't open the box nicely, so I just tore it apart.
—often used figurativelyThe robbers tore apart the house looking for the money.
We tore the other team apart in yesterday's game.
We can't agree, and it's tearing our family apart.
2
: to criticize (someone or something) in a very harsh or angry way especially by describing weaknesses, flaws, etc.
The article tears apart the company's handling of the situation.
They tore him apart when he left.
Examples of tear apart in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Battle at the Chicago Democratic convention 06:20 FROM THE ARCHIVES: Remembering 1968: Chicago's bloody Democratic Convention
The whole world was watching, as a nation torn apart by the Vietnam War was confronted by violence in the streets and conflict on the convention floor.
—
David Morgan, CBS News, 16 Aug. 2024
Her legs and arms are cruelly torn apart, and her extravagant dress soaked in red.
—Bill Desowitz, IndieWire, 14 Aug. 2024
Homicides not only tear apart families and neighborhoods, but can become political fodder in the presidential race.
—Russell Contreras, Axios, 13 Aug. 2024
The battle has torn apart decades-long friendships and business partnerships, sparked ugly spats on social media and dredged up old tensions around gender, race and civil rights — fault lines first drawn during Trump’s 2016 campaign.
—Gerrit De Vynck, Washington Post, 30 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for tear apart 
David Morgan, CBS News, 16 Aug. 2024
Her legs and arms are cruelly torn apart, and her extravagant dress soaked in red.
—Bill Desowitz, IndieWire, 14 Aug. 2024
Homicides not only tear apart families and neighborhoods, but can become political fodder in the presidential race.
—Russell Contreras, Axios, 13 Aug. 2024
The battle has torn apart decades-long friendships and business partnerships, sparked ugly spats on social media and dredged up old tensions around gender, race and civil rights — fault lines first drawn during Trump’s 2016 campaign.
—Gerrit De Vynck, Washington Post, 30 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for tear apart
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tear apart.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Tear apart.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tear%20apart. Accessed 23 Sep. 2024.
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