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
The album’s messy yet seamless scatter-spray of instruments—cello, hand shakers, piano—gets torn apart by the foulest plumes of bass.
—
Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 6 Nov. 2025
The war between the RSF and the Sudanese military has been tearing apart Sudan since April 2023.
—CNN Money, 4 Nov. 2025
The idea of Anniversary is to see this family slowly torn apart by political upheaval, a call to uniformity.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 29 Oct. 2025
Bueckers will also serve as an executive producer on the movie, which follows two teammates who are basketball phenoms and friends but are threatened to be torn apart by competition and the cutthroat nature of college athletics.
—Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tear apart
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Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 6 Nov. 2025
The war between the RSF and the Sudanese military has been tearing apart Sudan since April 2023.
—CNN Money, 4 Nov. 2025
The idea of Anniversary is to see this family slowly torn apart by political upheaval, a call to uniformity.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 29 Oct. 2025
Bueckers will also serve as an executive producer on the movie, which follows two teammates who are basketball phenoms and friends but are threatened to be torn apart by competition and the cutthroat nature of college athletics.
—Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tear apart
Cite this Entry
“Tear apart.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tear%20apart. Accessed 10 Nov. 2025.
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