rend
(rĕnd)
[Middle English renden, from Old English rendan.]
verb: rent (rĕnt) or rend·ed, rend·ing, rends.
transitive verb
- To tear or split apart or into pieces violently. See synonyms at tear1
- To tear (one's garments or hair) in anguish or rage.
- To tear away forcibly; wrest.
- To pull, split, or divide as if by tearing: “Chip was rent between the impulse to laugh wildly and a bitterness that threatened hot tears” (Louis Auchincloss)
- To pierce or disturb with sound: a scream rent the silence.
- To cause pain or distress to: tales that rend the heart.
intransitive verb
- To become torn or split; come apart.