tear down — criticize harshly
phrasal verbB2IELTS 6+informaloccasional
To strongly criticize someone or something, often in a way that makes them feel less confident or respected.
Say it like a native
Textbook He persistently disparaged her achievements.
Native He's always tearing her down.
'Tear someone down' is the punchy spoken verb for cutting someone down; 'disparage' is formal.
Pattern: tear down [object/person]
In use
- Instead of supporting her, he always tries to tear down her ideas in meetings.communication
- Some people believe that teachers should encourage students rather than tear them down for making mistakes.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ He tore down me in front of everyone.
✓ He tore me down in front of everyone.
With a pronoun, the object goes in the middle: 'tear me down'.
Common collocations
tear down + person— her, others, your confidence, people
Don't confuse it
'Tear down' (criticize) is about words and feelings, not buildings.
Related
- tear down (demolish (a building or structure)) — Another meaning of 'tear down' is 'demolish (a building or structure)'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.