TORE Synonyms: 151 Similar and Opposite Words

tore

verb

Definition of tore

past tense of tear

as in ripped

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in yanked

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

reattached

as in raced

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 tore The Vikings similarly struggled in 2023 after Kirk Cousins tore his Achilles tendon. — CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026 The collapse comes just weeks after a fire tore through a hospital in the capital Islamabad, killing at least 14 newborns and sparking widespread anger and multiple arrests. — Sophia Saifi, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2026 In a game in which Kansas City needed a win to keep its playoff hopes alive, Patrick Mahomes tore his ACL and LCL, with Los Angeles eventually winning 16-13. — Kansas City Star, 15 Oct. 2026 Producers Arya Ibrahim and Gita Fara describe the project as a story of the political upheaval of 1965, which tore families apart and left people who lost their citizenship living as exiles. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 12 Oct. 2026 In the absence of De’Von Achane, the running back who tore his ACL in Week 3, Ollie Gordon II has stepped up. — Miami Herald, 12 Oct. 2026 Shrapnel tore through the open school gates and grounds, killing forty-three people and injuring about a hundred and fifty. — Mosab Abu Toha, New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2026 That dream came to a screeching halt six years ago, when a sinkhole tore open that revealed an old mine lurking under Hideaway Hills -- forcing more than a dozen families to flee. — ABC News, 6 Oct. 2026 In the process, the pair get caught between two powerful families and the violent past that once tore them apart. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 6 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tore

Verb

With two outs in the opening frame, Junior Caminero and Jonny DeLuca ripped consecutive RBI knocks to put Tampa Bay up 2-0.

— Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Popular at American Chinese or Cajun-style Chinese restaurants, the sticky-sweet chicken is the utter definition of delicious, luring weary shoppers into food courts to find refuge from the bubblegum pink sweatpants and ripped denim.

— Jesse Szewczyk, Bon Appetit Magazine, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of ripped

Verb

Every belt buckle looks freshly yanked off the rack; every speck of signage resembles something painted 45 minutes before filming commenced that day.

— Michael Phillips, Variety, 8 Oct. 2026
After Lopez says something to the officers, he is yanked to the ground and punched repeatedly.

— Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of yanked

Verb

In Long Beach, with less than two hours before high tide, workers on the Peninsula raced early Sunday morning to build a sand berm stretching westward from 62nd Place.

— Fedor Zarkhin, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2026
Both the men’s and women’s Chicago Marathon winners raced to victory in the Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 super shoe on Sunday as the German brand continued to dominate the season.

— Katie Abel, Footwear News, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of raced

Verb

The bit caught a pipe strap and wrenched him off a ladder, tearing off his thumb and mangling his hand.

— Joe Rubin, Sacbee.com, 8 Oct. 2026
The flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, after passengers stormed the cockpit and wrenched back controlfrom the attacker, who Israeli officials suspect was trying to crash the plane.

— Nicholas Wu, semafor.com, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of wrenched

Verb

Shohei Ohtani emerged from the visiting dugout at American Family Field with a bat in his hand, and the mass of media members scattered in foul territory up the third-base line shifted his way, pulled by the magnetic force that is Ohtani’s stardom.

— Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
On Wednesday, the Congressional Leadership Fund, the House Republicans' super PAC, effectively dropped its push to boost Tijerina and pulled millions of dollars in ads from the district, a person familiar with the decision confirmed.

— Justin Papp, CNBC, 14 Oct. 2026