TORE DOWN Synonyms: 173 Similar and Opposite Words

tore down

verb

past tense of tear down

as in destroyed

to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of vandals tore down the wooden fence blocking the entrance to the beach

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as in demolished

to destroy (as a building) completely by knocking down or breaking to pieces the new owners apparently bought the house just to tear it down and build a lavish mansion in its place

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Example Sentences

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Recent Examples of tore down In October, the White House tore down its East Wing to make room for a $400 million ballroom. —

ABC News, 29 Apr. 2026 This is a sharp contrast to the four buildings LACMA tore down, including its original Ahmanson Building, from 1968, and the Art of the Americas Building, opened in 1986. —

Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 17 Apr. 2026 On Monday, cranes and demolition excavators tore down the exhibition hall closest to the Omni Hotel, dismembering parts of the building that will eventually unlock 20 to 30 acres for redevelopment and a new events facility. —

Devyani Chhetri, Dallas Morning News, 30 Mar. 2026 Footage showed dozens of people being arrested as agitators shouted insults at state patrol officers, tore down yellow police tape and hurled lewd objects at law enforcement. —

Alexandra Koch, FOXNews.com, 8 Feb. 2026 The mother and son tore down the existing structure and built the Tavern in its place. —

Matthew Geiger, Denver Post, 7 Feb. 2026 But several months later, construction crews tore down the East Wing and colonnade, as well as the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden. —

Ted Johnson, Deadline, 2 Feb. 2026 The group of artists, which was led by then-couple Michael Townsend and Adriana Valdez-Young, came up with the plan after real estate developers tore down their artists' commune about a mile away from what would become the mall. —

Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 27 Jan. 2026 During the demonstrations for racial justice in 2020, protestors across the country defaced and tore down statues of Washington, arguing that enslavers should be reviled, not honored. —

John Garrison Marks, Time, 23 Jan. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tore down

Verb

It was moved a day later to a naval base on the mainland for inspection and the explosives were later destroyed, according to Greece’s public broadcaster, ERT.

— ABC News, ABC News, 12 May 2026
The surge triggered severe erosion, damaged the powerhouse and nearby switchyards, washed debris into the North Yuba River and destroyed portions of Lake Francis Road.

— Nicole Buss, Sacbee.com, 12 May 2026