tear up

verb

tore up; torn up; tearing up; tears up

transitive verb

1

: to damage, remove, or effect an opening in

tore up the street to lay a new water main

2

: to perform or compete with great success on, in, or against

couples tearing up the dance floor

a batter who's tearing up the league

Examples of tear up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The city is densely populated but doesn’t have trash containers; instead, people leave their trash bags on the street, where they are often torn up by animals and the occasional vandal. — Esther King, The Dial, 15 Sep. 2026

When the Clippers’ negotiation with Aspiration moved slowly, Sanberg threatened to tear up the Leonard deal and sue. — Zach Harper, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026

Kotb and Bullock started tearing up alongside Nicole Kidman, who was also present for the interview. — Entertainment Weekly, 8 Sep. 2026

Potapova appeared to be tearing up as Andreeva came around the net for a long embrace after the final point. — ABC News, 7 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1620, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for tear up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup