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6 dictionary results for: Tears

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

tear1

[teer] Pronunciation Key

–noun

1.	a drop of the saline, watery fluid continually secreted by the lacrimal glands between the surface of the eye and the eyelid, serving to moisten and lubricate these parts and keep them clear of foreign particles.

2.	this fluid appearing in or flowing from the eye as the result of emotion, esp. grief.

3.	something resembling or suggesting a tear, as a drop of a liquid or a tearlike mass of a solid substance, esp. having a spherical or globular shape at one end and tapering to a point at the other.

4.	Glassmaking. a decorative air bubble enclosed in a glass vessel; air bell.

5.	tears, grief; sorrow.

–verb (used without object)

6.	to fill up and overflow with tears, as the eyes.

—Idiom

7.	in tears, weeping: He was in tears over the death of his dog.

[Origin: bef. 900; (n.) ME teer, OE téar, tehher, taeher; c. OHG zahar, ON tār, Goth tagr, Gk dákry, L lacrima (see lachrymal); (v.) ME teren, OE teheran, in teherende (ger.), deriv. of the n.

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

tear¹   (târ) Pronunciation Key
v.   tore (tôr, tōr), torn (tôrn, tōrn), tear·ing, tears

v.   tr.

To pull apart or into pieces by force; rend.
To make (an opening) by ripping: tore a hole in my stocking.
To lacerate (the skin, for example).
To separate forcefully; wrench: tore the wrappings off the present.
To divide or disrupt: was torn between opposing choices; a country that was torn by strife.

v. intr.

To become torn.
To move with heedless speed; rush headlong.

The act of tearing.
The result of tearing; a rip or rent.
A great rush; a hurry.
Slang A carousal; a spree.
To move about in excited, often angry haste.
To lead a wild life.
To pull at or attack violently: The dog tore at the meat.
To distress greatly: Their plight tore at his heart.
To demolish: tear down old tenements.
To take apart; disassemble: tear down an engine.
To vilify or denigrate.
To tear to pieces.
To make an opening in: tore up the sidewalk to add a drain.

Phrasal Verb(s):
tear around Informal

To move about in excited, often angry haste.
To lead a wild life.

tear at

To pull at or attack violently: The dog tore at the meat.
To distress greatly: Their plight tore at his heart.

tear away
To remove (oneself, for example) unwillingly or reluctantly.
tear down

To demolish: tear down old tenements.
To take apart; disassemble: tear down an engine.
To vilify or denigrate.

tear into
To attack with great vigor or violence: tore into the food; tore into his opponent.
tear off Informal
To produce hurriedly and casually: tearing off article after news article.
tear up

To tear to pieces.
To make an opening in: tore up the sidewalk to add a drain.

Idiom(s):
tear (one's) hair
To be greatly upset or distressed.

[Middle English teren, from Old English teran; see der- in Indo-European roots.]

tear'er n.

Synonyms: These verbs mean to separate or pull apart by force. Tear involves pulling something apart or into pieces: "She tore the letter in shreds" (Edith Wharton).
Rip implies rough or forcible tearing: Carpenters ripped up the old floorboards.
Rend usually refers to violent tearing or wrenching apart: "Come as the winds come, when/Forests are rended" (Sir Walter Scott).
To split is to cut or break something into parts or layers, especially along its entire length or along a natural line of division: "They [wood stumps] warmed me twice—once while I was splitting them, and again when they were on the fire" (Henry David Thoreau).
Cleave most often refers to splitting with or as if with a sharp instrument: The butcher cleft the side of beef into smaller portions.

(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

tear² (tîr) Pronunciation Key
n.

1. A drop of the clear salty liquid that is secreted by the lachrymal gland of the eye to lubricate the surface between the eyeball and eyelid and to wash away irritants.
2. tears A profusion of this liquid spilling from the eyes and wetting the cheeks, especially as an expression of emotion.
3. tears The act of weeping: criticism that left me in tears.
A drop of a liquid or hardened fluid.

intr.v. teared, tear·ing, tears
To fill with tears.

[Middle English, from Old English tēar; see dakru- in Indo-European roots.]

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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

tears
noun
the process of shedding tears (usually accompanied by sobs or other inarticulate sounds); "I hate to hear the crying of a child"; "she was in tears" [syn: crying]

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American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms - Cite This Source - Share This

tears

see bore to death (tears); burst into (tears); crocodile tears. Also see under tear.

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The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

tear (tîr) Pronunciation Key

A drop of the clear salty liquid secreted by glands (lacrimal glands) in the eyes. Tears wet the membrane covering the eye and help rid the eye of irritating substances.

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