tear apart

Slang Dictionary

tear (so/sth) apart definition

tv.
to criticize someone or something severely. : I was late, and the boss tore me apart.

Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source

American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

tear apart

Upset or make distraught, as in The parents' divorce tore apart the grandparents. [Second half of 1800s]
Criticize severely, as in The professor tore her paper apart. [Mid-1900s]
Search some place completely, as in The police tore the house apart. [Second half of 1900s]
Separate, especially unwillingly, as in The war tore many families apart.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source

Relevant Questions

What Tears Relationships...

What Tears A Friendship ...

What Tears Relationships...

What Tears A Friendship ...

00:10

Tear apart is always a great word to know.

So is bezoar. Does it mean:

a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.

a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.

LEARN MORE UNUSUAL WORDS WITH WORD DYNAMO...

Matching Quote

"Japan gets the most of ordinary people by organizing them to adapt and succeed. America, by getting out of their way so that they can adjust individually, allows them to succeed. It is not that Japan has no individualists and America no organizations, but the thrusts of the societies are different. Japan has distorted its economy and depressed its living standard in order to keep its job structure and social values as steady as possible. At the government's direction, the entire economy has tried to flex almost as one, in response to the ever-changing world. The country often seems like a family that becomes more tightly bound together when it must withstand war, emigration, or some other upheaval. America's strength is the opposite: it opens its doors and brings the world's disorder in. It tolerates social change that would tear most other countries apart. The openness encourages Americans to adapt as individuals rather than as a group."

-James Fallows

Enjoy Dictionary.com ad-free! Learn more