TEARS Synonyms: 157 Similar and Opposite Words

tears 1 of 2

noun

Definition of tears next

plural of tear

as in slits

a long deep cut repaired a tear in the theater curtain just before the start of the show

Synonyms & Similar Words

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tears

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of tear

as in rips

to cause (something) to separate into jagged pieces by violently pulling at it angrily tore the letter to shreds

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as in yanks

to separate or remove by forceful pulling tore the book from his hand

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

reattaches

as in rushes

to proceed or move quickly she tore out of the room as soon as the phone started to ring

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of tears

Noun

Through your tears, see a brief, shimmering vision of What Might Have Been. —

Ian Frazier, New Yorker, 4 May 2026 My eyes, raw and stinging, now filled with their own salty tears. —

Angela Andaloro, PEOPLE, 4 May 2026 Boston sports fans are dusting themselves off and wiping away their tears after playoff-ending games by both the Bruins and the Celtics over the weekend, and an extremely rocky start for the Red Sox. —

Paul Burton, CBS News, 4 May 2026 My eyes were filled with tears. —

Malaka Gharib, NPR, 4 May 2026 In a dark, crowded theater at the Davis Theater on Sunday afternoon, Uptown resident Eva Gurtovaia stood up, fighting back tears. —

Christiana Freitag, Chicago Tribune, 3 May 2026 Jake Rosmarin, a passenger on the ship, appeared to fight back tears in a video shared on Instagram May 4. —

Eve Chen, USA Today, 3 May 2026 Kerminen, who has visited around 100 times, recalls once seeing a hefty-looking tattooed man burst into tears in response to the space. —

Lale Arikoglu, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 May 2026 As a multiple time Stanley Cup champion himself, Guerin understands better than most that this was only the first step in a journey that will require so much more blood, so much more sweat and so much more tears. —

Dane Mizutani, Twin Cities, 2 May 2026

Verb

Drink, drugs and sometimes tears. —

Jessica Guynn, USA Today, 28 Apr. 2026 Inheritance often tears families apart and much of that conflict is rooted in poor communication. —

R. Eric Thomas, Mercury News, 24 Apr. 2026 Jeffries tears into DeSantis as 'charismatically challenged' over redistricting gambit. —

FOXNews.com, 24 Apr. 2026 The company regularly buys brand-new devices and tears them to pieces. —

Julian Lucas, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026 As the GIs raise their guns, a pudgy hand in the backseat tears a strip of white cloth from his companion’s petticoat for the chauffeur to hang out the window. —

Alice Kaplan, The New York Review of Books, 4 Apr. 2026 If the oyster tears slightly, don’t panic; flavor matters much more than perfection. —

Rai Mincey, Southern Living, 10 Mar. 2026 His scientist creator, Victor Frankenstein, reluctantly agrees, but at the last moment tears the unfinished mate limb from limb as the creature watches on in horror. —

Leah Dolan, CNN Money, 6 Mar. 2026 Under her watch, Americans have been murdered in cold blood, DHS has obstructed lawful congressional oversight, dismissed credible reports of abuse, carried out an extreme agenda that tears families apart and destabilizes communities. —

The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 5 Feb. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tears

Noun

The only telltale signs of the electronics hidden in the temples are a single power button, a four-contact connector, pinhole microphones, and thin speaker grille slits.

— Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 29 Apr. 2026
Plus, the side slits keep the shirt relaxed without looking too boxy on smaller frames.

— Aashna Gheewalla, PEOPLE, 27 Apr. 2026