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 figuratively

The 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

In Seeking Shelter, Jeff Hobbs exposes the scourge of homelessness that’s tearing apart working families. —Gabrielle Bellot, Literary Hub, 2 Feb. 2026

But the locker room of an already losing team isn’t being torn apart by a guy who isn’t playing, much less one as affable and positive as Giannis, who clearly wants to do right by Milwaukee. —Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2026

Carlos and thousands of mixed-status families are being torn apart. —Miami Herald, 31 Jan. 2026

The Conservative government, torn apart by numerous scandals and internal divisions, faced a huge public backlash. —Oliver Kay, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2026

Rhymes for tear apart

• counterpart
• art
• cart
• carte
• chart
• dart
• fart
• haart
• mart
• part
• smart
• start