totear

T1O1T1E1A1R1
UK/təˈtɛə/US/təˈtɛɚ/

verb

To tear apart; tear to pieces or shreds; rend.

OriginMiddle English toteren ← Old English tōteran ← Proto-Germanic *twiz- →
Scrabble 6
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Meanings

verbtotear (third-person singular simple present totears, present participle totearing, simple past totore, past participle totorn)

present singular third person totears · participle present totearing · past totore · participle past totorn

  1. obsoleteTo tear apart; tear to pieces or shreds; rend.
  2. obsoleteTo break.
  3. obsoleteTo disturb violently; agitate.

Origin

  1. Proto-Germanic*twiz-“apart”
  2. Old Englishtōteran“to tear apart, tear asunder”
  3. Middle Englishtoteren
  4. Englishtotear

From Middle English toteren, from Old English tōteran (“to tear apart, tear asunder”), from Proto-Germanic *twiz- (“apart”), *teraną (“to tear, tear away”), equivalent to to- + tear.

More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-Germanic

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

rotatetreato
Cite this entry
APA

totear. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/totear

MLA

“totear.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/totear. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “totear,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/totear.

Source: totear on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.