tearing down

verb

present participle of tear down
1
as in destroying
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in demolishing
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

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 tearing down In the story, Ria teams up with her foster mother and their fellow punks to resist a merciless developer intent on tearing down their building. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 19 Oct. 2026 Whether the commenter ever followed through on the challenge is still unclear, but SZA had something to say to people who think tearing down someone else’s artwork is worth a lot of their time. — Alicia Urrea, Billboard, 15 Oct. 2026 At the time, LeVota said the plan could involve tearing down one or both stadiums. — Dylan Lysen, Kansas City Star, 7 Oct. 2026 Development in Charlotte has often involved tearing down historic sites. — Charlotte Observer, 18 Sep. 2026 While their Oscar-winning No Other Land alternated between scenes of bulldozers tearing down homes in the West Bank and scenes showing the growing camaraderie between Abraham and his Palestinian co-director Badel Adra, there is no such relief here. — Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 10 Sep. 2026 Demolition crews have begun tearing down the historic Grandview United Presbyterian Church in Mount Washington after weeks of delays. — Gabby Sartori, USA Today, 1 Sep. 2026 Demolition crews this month began tearing down another complex, the Lindy Boggs Medical Center, which had sat blighted and vacant for more than 20 years after Katrina. — Jack Brook, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026 Videos broadcast by regional news outlets and posted on social media show violent torrents of water surging through valleys and mountain passes, tearing down bridges and dams and sweeping away buildings. — Arshad R. Zargar, CBS News, 26 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tearing down
  1. destroying
  2. demolishing
  3. ruining
  4. pulling down
  5. shattering
  6. devastating
  7. wrecking
  8. smashing
Verb
  • After destroying much of Gaza and killing tens of thousands of Palestinians, Israel has regained military control of nearly 70 percent of the strip.
    — Dalia Dassa Kaye, Foreign Affairs, 27 Oct. 2026
  • But if firms lean on AI to cut lower-level work, the risk is destroying the very avenue of apprenticeship that produces future senior associates and managers.
    — Tim Brackney, Forbes.com, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of destroying
Verb
  • Following the attack, the Israeli military began forcing Palestinian families to leave their homes in parts of the city as forces began demolishing homes and businesses.
    — Oren Liebermann, CNN Money, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Photographs from Hebron showed Israeli bulldozers demolishing at least one Palestinian building.
    — Chantal Da Silva, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of demolishing
Verb
  • The song is a cautionary tale about a brothel in New Orleans known for ruining many poor girls.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2026
  • As wet electrodes get thicker, the liquid binder migrates unevenly during drying, ruining the battery‘s structure.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of ruining
Verb
  • The pressure improved in the second half with edge Seth Coleman-Lyles and defensive lineman Cam Riley pulling down quarterback Brandon Allen for the only sack of the game.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 23 Aug. 2026
  • The teenage girls alerted police of the incident, in which the suspect allegedly attempted to engage the girls in conversation while pulling down his pants and masturbating in the driver’s seat of his vehicle, police said.
    — Rachel Roberts, Idaho Statesman, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of pulling down
Verb
  • Not since the Tesla Cybertruck made its glass-shattering debut in 2019 has a vehicle’s unveiling proven as polarizing as the Luce event.
    — Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The move came after a fireball erupted at this past New Year’s event, shattering windows and injuring a child in downtown Boise.
    — Idaho Statesman, Idaho Statesman, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of shattering
Verb
  • The earthquake comes less than two months after a border region of Nepal and Tibet was struck by devastating flash flooding that left hundreds of people dead and destroyed several communities.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Sudan’s military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have been fighting since April 2023, devastating large parts of the country and threatening stability along its borders.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of devastating
Verb
  • From Miami to Fort Lauderdale, residents struggled through the saltwater suddenly seeping into their neighborhoods and wrecking their commute.
    — Alex Harris, Miami Herald, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Kyle Larson and Tyler Reddick crossed the line while wrecking after Larson hit the wall trying to chase down Briscoe on the final turn.
    — Zach Dean OutKick, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of wrecking
Verb
  • Protests last week devolved into mayhem, with people setting fires, storming public buildings, smashing shop windows, looting and clashing with police.
    — ELITSA GADEVA, Arkansas Online, 24 Oct. 2026
  • This was the 36th launch and landing for B1063, which notably launched NASA's DART asteroid-smashing mission in November 2021.
    — Josh Dinner, Space.com, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of smashing

Browse Nearby Words

tearing
tearing down
tearing into
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Cite this Entry

“Tearing down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tearing%20down. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

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