How to Use Tore vs. Torn (Explained, With Examples)

First published on January 14, 2023 by Dalia Y.|Last revised on January 15, 2025

To tear is the present tense; tore is the simple past tense. Torn is the past participle.

How to Use Tore vs. Torn (Explained, With Examples)

What's the past tense of "tear"?

The simple past tense of tear is tore, and the past participle is torn. Use tore for simple past tense and torn for past participle forms.

Definition of tear

The Oxford English Dictionary defines tear as "to pull apart or in pieces by force; to rend, rip; to make a hole or split in (something) by pulling." It can also mean to damage or destroy something by pulling it apart.

The past tense of tear is tore.

The past participle of tear is torn.

Note: As a noun, a tear (sounds like year) refers to the liquid from our eyeballs when we cry. More technically said, a tear is a "drop of clear saline fluid secreted by the lacrimal gland and diffused between the eye and eyelids to moisten the parts and facilitate their motion."

Verb forms of 'tear'

When we speak of the differences between the past simple tense and the past perfect, there are a number of key differences to be on the lookout for. First, auxiliaryverbs pair with the participle form of a verb, which, in this case, is torn. This is not the case with the simple past tense, which is likely why it’s called the ‘simple past’.

The past perfect tense, which is formed by the auxiliary ‘had‘ + past participle, is used to clarify the order in which past events took place. We use the past perfect tense to indicate that an action or event was completed or had happened before another action or event in the past. This conveys a slightly more complex relationship with time than the simple past, which simply describes an action that was completed at a point in the past.

💡Grammar Tip

Remember to always pair participles with an auxiliary! For perfect tenses, use ‘have’, ‘has’, or ‘had’. For continuous, use a form of ‘to be’.

"Tear" / "tore" / "torn" in sentence examples

Verb form	Example Sentences
Tear (present tense)	You'll need to tear the old wallpaper off the walls. She tried to tear a small piece off the edge. Be careful not to tear the delicate fabric.
Tore (simple past)	I tore my jeans on the fence. The fabric snagged and tore at the seams. She tore a ligament in her knee while playing soccer.
Torn (past participle)	A couple of pages had been torn out of the book. She was torn between staying and going. I have torn my favorite shirt and now it needs to be mended.

Verb form

Example Sentences

Tear
(present tense)

You'll need to tear the old wallpaper off the walls.

She tried to tear a small piece off the edge.

Be careful not to tear the delicate fabric.

Tore
(simple past)

I tore my jeans on the fence.

The fabric snagged and tore at the seams.

She tore a ligament in her knee while playing soccer.

Torn
(past participle)

A couple of pages had been torn out of the book.

She was torn between staying and going.

I have torn my favorite shirt and now it needs to be mended.

Synonyms & nearby words

Synonyms for tear

rip rend split shred lacerate sever damage destroy

Nearby phrases

tear apart tear down tear up tear off tear into tear through torn apart

Origin of tear

From etymology online on tear (v.):

To “pull apart,” Old English teran “to tear, lacerate”, from Proto-Germanic *teran.

Practice: Forms of “Tear”

FAQs

What's the simple past of tear?

The simple past tense of the irregular verb 'tear' is 'tore'. The post gives the example sentence: "I tore my jeans on the fence." This form is used for actions completed at a specific point in the past.

What's the past participle of tear?

The past participle form of the irregular verb 'tear' is 'torn'. It is used with auxiliary verbs like 'have' or 'had' in perfect tenses. The post gives the example: "His jacket had been torn to shreds."

When do you use 'tore'?

Use 'tore' as the simple past tense of 'tear' for actions completed in the past without using an auxiliary verb. The post's example is: "I tore my jeans on the fence." It signifies a finished action at a specific time.

When do you use 'torn'?

Use 'torn' as the past participle of 'tear'. It always requires an auxiliary verb (like 'have' or 'had') to form perfect tenses or passive structures, as shown in "His jacket had been torn to shreds."

Is "have tore" grammatically correct?

No, according to the post, "have tore" is grammatically incorrect. Auxiliary verbs like 'have' must be paired with the past participle form, which for 'tear' is 'torn'. The simple past 'tore' is used without auxiliary verbs.