tear

1 to cause (something) to separate into jagged pieces by violently pulling at it angrily tore the letter to shreds Synonyms rend, ribbon, rip, rive, shred, tatter Related Words break, cleave, rupture, split; cut, gash, incise, lacerate, slash; butcher, dismember, dissect, hack, mangle

2 to separate or remove by forceful pulling tore the book from his hand Synonyms rip, wrench, wrest, yank Related Words grab, nab, seize, snap (up), snatch; lop (off), nip; amputate, cut (off), dissever, sever; extract, force, jerk, prize, pry, pull, root (out), uproot Near Antonyms reattach

3 to proceed or move quickly she tore out of the room as soon as the phone started to ring Synonyms barrel, belt, blast, blaze, blow, bolt, bomb [slang], bowl, breeze, bundle, bustle, buzz, cannonball, careen, career, chase, course, crack (on), dash, drive, fly, hare, hasten, hie, highball, hotfoot (it), hump, hurl, hurtle, hustle, jet, jump, motor, nip, pelt, race, ram, rip, rocket, run, rush, rustle, scoot, scurry, scuttle, shoot, speed, step, hurry, travel, trot, whirl, whisk, zip, zoomRelated Words beetle, dart, flit, scamper, scud, scuffle; stampede, streak, whiz (or whizz); gallop, jog, sprint; accelerate, quicken, step out; catch up, fast-forward, outpace, outrun, outstrip, overtake; arrow, beelineNear Antonyms dally, dawdle, dillydally, drag, hang (around or out), lag, linger, loiter, poke, tarry; amble, lumber, plod, saunter, shuffle, stroll; decelerate, slow (down or up)Antonyms crawl, creep, poke